exchange rate volatility has fuelled more foreign demands for agricultural products, especially, from neighbouring countries. while this presents an opportunity to expand and boost agricultural output, hence creating jobs in the sector, supply constraint exacerbated demand, instigating more inflationary pressures. given this backdrop, the emergency committee on food security set up by the president has been taking a number of measures and we see an end in sight to the persistent rise of food inflation. on our side at the cbn, we have responded with significant monetary policy tightening to reign in inflationary pressure. empirical analysis has established that money supply is one of the factors fuelling the current inflationary pressure. for instance, an analysis of the trend of the money supply spanning over 9 months shows that m3 increased from n52. 01 trillion in january 2023 to n68. 25 trillion in november 2023 representing n16. 24 trillion or 31. 22 percent increase over the period. increase in net foreign asset ( nfa ) following the harmonization of exchange rates and the n3. 22 trillion ways and means advances were the major factors driving the increase in money supply. we have also halted quasi - fiscal measures totalling over 10 trillion naira by the central bank of nigeria previously disguised as development finance interventions. these measures had contributed to increase in money supply thereby raising prices to the levels of inflation we are grappling with today. the cbn's adoption of inflation - targeting framework involves clear communication and collaboration with fiscal authorities to achieve price stability, potentially leading to lowered policy rates, stimulating investment, and creating job opportunities. our mpc meeting on the 26th and 27th of february is also expected to review the situation and take further decisions on these important issues. distinguished senators, inflationary pressures are expected to decline in 2024 due to the cbn's inflation - targeting policy, aiming to rein in inflation to 21. 4 percent at the 2 / 4 bis - central bankers'speeches medium term, aided by improved agricultural productivity and easing global supply chain pressures. exchange management the nigerian foreign exchange market is currently facing increased demand pressures, causing a continuous decline in the value of the naira. factors contributing to this situation include speculative forex demand, inadequate forex supply increased capital outflows, and excess liquidity. the shift to a market - driven exchange rate was intended to create a stable macroeconomic environment and discourage currency hoarding. however, short - term volatilities are attributed to arbitrage and

funds ) directive and the directive on occupational pension funds, which ought to eliminate barriers to investment and, of course, the importance of the directive on take - over bids in the context of the integration of national stock exchanges. more generally, it is very important for the european union to accelerate reforms in the financial field. in this respect, as i said, key directives have to be laid down and transposed adequately in national laws, whereby the public authorities within fesco and professionals ( like the members of your association ) should play a role to facilitate a harmonized set of principles or recommendations. on all these subjects, we can expect a lot of progress in the following months, within the guidelines already issued by the european commission ( in its financial services action plan ). france, for its part, has already expressed its intention to put these matters on the agenda when it takes over the presidency of the european union in july. 2. 2 coming now to the process of consolidation in the banking sector, there is no need to recall how banking and financial consolidation has sped up in recent years in europe. of course, this evolution is closely connected to the introduction of the euro and the creation of a single capital market. some major players are emerging in each country of the eec. clearly, we have new and exciting challenges ahead of us on the way to european banking consolidation. the bodies in charge of banking regulations, along with those responsible for the supervision of credit and financial institutions, keep a close eye on these developments. the stance of national regulators in europe is based on the strong and efficient coordination of banking and financial supervision, with ongoing flows of information and, where necessary, coordinated actions which may lead to the designation of a lead regulator. recently, several examples of such coordinated supervision between european banking authorities, such as that between the belgian and french authorities for the dexia group, have shown that national supervisors are well prepared to cope with large cross - border groups. 2. 3 finally, let me say a few words on the situation of the euro in the foreign exchange market. we have heard quite frequently during the recent months, and especially when the euro weakened against the dollar, that the cause for this situation was to be found in the supposed absence of structural reforms that disadvantaged the euro zone vis - a - vis its main competitors. in the same vein, it is often said that the poor performance of the euro reflects the growth differential between the euro zone economy and the us economy. let me comment