Nigeria, Sept. 12 -- Business confidence among formal-sector enterprises in Nigeria strengthened in August 2026, with the Business Confidence Index (BCI) rising to 14.8 points from 5.7 points in July, a Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) survey has shown.

The improvement indicates stronger positive sentiment among businesses, according to the CBN's August 2026 Business Expectations Survey (BES), released by the bank's Statistics Department, Economic Policy Directorate.

The survey said respondents' positive sentiment was largely driven by increased demand, economic diversification and the monetary policy stance, which recorded indices of 25.9 per cent, 18.3 per cent and 14.2 per cent, respectively.

Businesses also expressed optimism about th...