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Ten Surprises of 2018

Dear Speculators,

Let's face it, 2017 was a bad year. The only things that went the right way in '17 were crude oil, equities and the decelerating pace of inflation. From fuel scarcity to periodic power outages, rising unemployment to terrorism perpetrated by herdsmen, Nigeria looked more or less worse of the same.

As usual, the new year has started with a lot of hope but the long queues at filling stations is enough to beat out the optimism out of most realists. To help in putting the most important things into perspectives so we do not dwell less on minor things rather than channelling all our attention to major possibilities this year, we have put together 10 of the biggest surprises this year you should pay attention to.

Ten Surprises of 2018
1. The stock market ASI crosses 65,000
2. Banks post record annual profits for 2017
3. 1-year TBills rates fall below 13%
4. Inflation falls below 12.5%
5. Nigeria's economy expands by more than 4%
6. Crude oil price exceeds $90
7. Pres. Buhari announces re-election bid to complete the Change Agenda and polls show he could actually win
8. CBN drops interest rate and devalues the Naira 
9. External reserves exceed $50bn
10. Petrol pump price jumps to N180

Some of the above predictions might seem crazy, some may be expected but these are our biggest ideas of 2018. While we hope some of the forecast do not come to fruition, it will be obscene to pretend like it is not a real possibility.

 Emeka Ucheaga
Managing Partner,
Emeka Ucheaga Advisory

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