External Reserves Hit $41.5bn As NEFM Records $2.8bn Inflow

Nigeria’s outer reserves person continued to accumulate, pushing the worth of the naira to admit astatine some the authoritative and parallel ends of the market. The Nigerian Foreign Exchange Market (NFEM) recorded an inflow of $2.8 cardinal successful August.

According to information by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), gross reserves roseate for the ninth consecutive week, signaling a week-on-week summation of $232.11 cardinal oregon 0.56 per cent to $41.499 cardinal arsenic of September 3, 2025, compared to $41.2267 billion, which it closed past month.

The naira appreciated by 1.01 per cent past week, and analysts task that the upward momentum volition beryllium sustained. Steady reserve accretion provides a captious buffer against outer shocks, peculiarly lipid terms volatility and speculative pressures.

Meanwhile, information from FMDQ showed that full inflows into the Nigerian Foreign Exchange Market (NFEM) fell by 26.9 per cent month-on-month to $2.80 cardinal successful August, compared to $3.83 cardinal successful July. The diminution reflected weaker information crossed some overseas and section sources.

Foreign inflows dipped to a four-month debased of $1.06 billion, down 61 per cent month-on-month, arsenic overseas portfolio investments (FPIs) slumped by 65.8 per cent and overseas nonstop concern (FDI) dropped by 25.2 per cent. The contraction was, however, cushioned by a crisp 165.5 per cent summation successful inflows from corporates.

On the home side, inflows stood astatine $1.74 billion, representing a 17.9 per cent driblet from July levels. The moderation was mostly owed to declines from exporters and importers (-32.8 per cent) and non-bank corporates (-32.7 per cent). These declines overshadowed beardown inflows from individuals, which roseate by 413.8 per cent, and from the CBN, which posted a 118.9 per cent increase.

Despite the slowdown, optimism remains strong, arsenic analysts astatine Cordros Research accidental they expect inflows to stay robust successful the adjacent term.

“We expect overseas speech inflows from some section and overseas sources to stay strong, surpassing 2024 levels, supported by improving marketplace assurance and still-attractive naira yields for overseas portfolio investors.”

Last week, the worth of the naira connected the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEM) closed astatine N1,514.87 to the dollar, driven by improved liquidity and dollar proviso from FPIs participating successful the OMO Primary Market Auction and a $15 cardinal involution by the CBN.

The parallel marketplace besides recorded humble improvement, with the naira strengthening by 0.02 per cent to an mean of N1,538 to the dollar, arsenic trader assurance improved and speculative pressures eased.

Analysts astatine Cowry Asset Management explained that the build-up enhances the CBN’s capableness to stabilise the market: “The incremental build-up successful outer reserves provides an important cushion for the system portion equipping the CBN with greater capableness to smoothen volatility successful the overseas speech market.”

However, unit was disposable successful the forwards market, wherever the naira weakened crossed tenors. The one-month declaration closed astatine N1,572.31, the three-month declaration astatine N1,646.72, the six-month declaration astatine N1,751.58, and the one-year declaration astatine N1,952.87, indicating capitalist caution implicit longer-term stability.