The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has returned to the foreign exchange market with a $50 million intervention aimed at improving dollar supply and easing renewed pressure on the naira.
The currency has come under strain as foreign inflows slowed while demands for FX to settle offshore obligations surged. With the naira having enjoyed a period of appreciation earlier in the quarter, the CBN had reduced its frequency of dollar injections.
However, the regulator re-entered the market this week as depreciation intensified across trading windows.
Fresh CBN data showed that the naira weakened by ₦6.76 to close at ₦1,454.18 per dollar at the official market on Wednesday. During intraday trading, the rate briefly approached ₦1,460 despite the FX intervention.
Similarly, the parallel market reported a loss of ₦5, placing the closing rate at ₦1,460 per dollar. As a result, the premium between both markets narrowed to 0.40%.
Meanwhile, new figures from the CBN indicate that external reserves have increased to $44.045 billion, while CBN Governor Yemi Cardoso disclosed at a forum that reserves had reached $46.7 billion — the highest in seven years.
Analysts attribute the stronger reserves to renewed investor confidence and enhanced oil-related earnings.
Investment analysts at TrustBanc Financial Group noted that Nigeria’s reserve levels now provide 10.3 months of import cover, an improvement that has contributed to reducing FX market distortions and narrowing the premium to below 2%.
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