In September 2025, the economy of Nigeria continued to record an upward trend since the Purchasing Managers Index (PMI) increased to 54.0 points in September compared to 51.7 points in August and this is the tenth month of consecutive growth.
The annual PMI report that was issued by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) showed that the index revealed increased growth in business operations in the major sectors.
PMI is among the primary economic health predictors, and the value above 50 will indicate growth. The September figure of 54.0 of the output of Nigeria shows that it is still improving its output, new orders and employment.
The growth is based on high-level industry-wide growth in the Industry, Services and Agriculture sectors, which was sustained in the third quarter of 2025.
The Composite PMI growth of September and its 3 key sectoral indices (Industry, Services and Agriculture) revealed that the general economic activity is healthy.
The report indicated good readings in the key indicators: Output Index 54.8 points; New Orders Index 53.7 points; Employment Index 53.4 points; Raw Materials Inventory 52.9 points; and Suppliers’ Delivery Time, 54.6 points.
The figures indicate increased production, growth in demand, and an improved speed of supply chain operation, which indicates that the businesses work more efficiently.
CBN surveyed 36 subsectors of which 28 reported expansions whilst the remaining 8 had mild contractions. The best performance was registered in the Forestry subsector with a spectacular index points of 73.6 and Nonmetallic Mineral Products was the worst hit with the index points dropping to 40.7 index points.
The Industry Sector PMI has now revived to 51.4 points in September as compared to 49.1 points in August thus the industry returned to the growth after briefly shrinking in the last month.
Among the 17 industrial subsectors, 11 of them performed growths, with the highest growth of Printing and Related Support Activities (59.4 points) and 6 subsectors had slight declines with Nonmetallic Mineral Products performing the worst with 40.7 points.
The important indicators in the sector demonstrated: Output 51.6; Employment 51.9 points; Raw Materials Inventory 51.1 points; and Suppliers-delivery Time 54.6 points.
Despite the slight contraction in New Orders (49.4 points), the overall activity was positive, as a measure of improved production output and labour involvement.
Services Sector continued with its strong growth pace, registering 54.7 points in September.
All the major indicators increased: Business Activities (56.3), New Orders (55.1), Employment (54.1), and Inventories (53.2) with steady demand and employment situation in the sector.
Among the 14 subsectors, 12 registered growths, with Educational Services (65.8 points) on top, and Professional, Scientific and Technical Services registered a slight contraction of 45.6 points.
Also, the Agriculture Sector PMI increased to 54.8 points, which is the fourteenth month in its growth, and it is the best-performing sector.
The growth was extensive and all the five subsectors were growing. The most important sub-indexes included: General Farming Activities, 55.4 points; New Orders, 55.9 points; Employment, 53.4 points, and Raw Materials Inventory, 54.5 points;
Forestry subsector dominated the gains with outstanding results of 73.6 points reflecting underlying agricultural strength and the role it is playing in the national output.
