Nigeria's foreign reserve increase by 5% to $33.58bn according to latest CBN report

NIGERIA'S foreign exchange reserves have increased by 5% to $33.58bn over the last two months giving the economy a bit of a mini boost and allowing the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) slight room for manoeuvre.

According to the CBN’s latest FX data published on June 19, Nigeria's foreign exchange reserves figure represents a $1.47bn increase, compared with the $32.11bn that was in the bank's account on April 19. Announcing the figures during its recent monetary policy committee (MPC) meeting, the CBN  reiterated its commitment to boosting Nigeria’s external reserves.

An MPC statement read:  “The committee also noted the marginal increase in the external reserve balance between March and April 2024 and urged the bank to sustain its focus on accretion to reserves.".

However, despite the increase in the country’s foreign reserves, Nigeria's currency, the naira depreciated to N1485.36 against the US dollar for the second consecutive time this week.

About two weeks ago,  the Nigerian government received $925m from Afrieximbank under a $3.3bn crude oil-backed pre-payment facility arranged by the Nigerian National Petroleum Company to help address liquidity problems in the economy.