The gross balance of Nigeria’s foreign reserves increased to $38.832 billion, according to Central Bank figures.
This week, Nigeria’s external reserves increased by $33.614 million, up from $38.709 billion the previous week. Despite decreased oil output, foreign exchange accretion into the country’s reserves continues to rise, according to the most recent OPEC report.
While the market cannot quantify inflows from oil sales into FX reserves, experts highlighted that the Apex Bank has used the OMO bills market to entice international portfolio investors.
Last week, the average yield on OMO bills increased by 214 basis points to 25.9% following the CBN auction. At the OMO auctions, the CBN offered the sum of N300 billion, but allocated N905 billion worth of OMO bills to market participants.
In its commentary note, Coronation Research said it appears that take-up by Foreign Portfolio Investors (FPI) was strong. The CBN’s stop rate stood for 361-day OMO bills settled at 24.3%.
