Nigeria’s overseas alternate reserves rose to $41.00 billion on August 19, 2025, the very best degree in 44 months.
That is in line with figures revealed by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) on its web site.
The present degree marks the very best degree recorded since December 3, 2021, and exhibits the regular exterior accretion witnessed in current weeks.
The brand new trajectory comes after months of gradual depletion and volatility, largely attributed to intense stress from exterior debt repayments.
Sustained accretion in August
The reserves have staged a robust rally in August, including about $1.46 billion month-to-date, from $39.54 billion on 1 August to $41.00 billion by 19 August. This represents a 3.69% development in lower than three weeks. The momentum has been broadly constant throughout buying and selling days, with solely marginal pauses.
- The build-up started in earnest from early August, when reserves crossed the $40 billion threshold on 7 August, after closing July beneath $39.4 billion.
- From there, the tempo of accretion quickened: reserves superior to $40.5 billion by 12 August and crossed $41 billion only a week later. On common, the nation’s reserves have grown by roughly $81 million per day in August, reflecting improved FX inflows relative to outflows.
This sharp climb underpins the CBN’s capability to stabilise the naira within the official market, handle liquidity, and defend in opposition to speculative stress.
Yr-to-date efficiency and long-term pattern
The year-to-date image, nonetheless, exhibits extra modest features. Nigeria’s reserves opened the yr at $40.88 billion on 31 December 2024. On the newest print of $41.00 billion, this interprets to a rise of about $124 million or 0.30%.
- In different phrases, a lot of the 2025 features have been concentrated up to now 5 weeks, following a comparatively subdued first half of the yr.
- Between January and June, reserves largely fluctuated inside the $37 billion to $39 billion vary, reflecting FX market interventions, oil worth swings, and debt service obligations.
- For example, reserves dipped to $37.28 billion in early July earlier than the current rebound. The sharp turnaround since mid-July has subsequently added over $3 billion, a development of about 8% inside only a month.
From an extended horizon, the $41 billion recorded places Nigeria in its strongest exterior reserve place since late 2021. The current enchancment is important given the extended drawdowns that adopted via 2022 and 2023, when reserves struggled to carry above $38 billion.
Why it issues
A stronger reserve base is a important pillar for forex market confidence. It improves Nigeria’s sovereign credit score outlook, reassures buyers of the federal government’s capability to fulfill exterior obligations, and strengthens the CBN’s capability to handle liquidity shocks. Importantly, the symbolic return to the $41 billion degree alerts improved FX inflows, presumably from crude oil earnings or portfolio flows.
Earlier, the CBN additionally reported sustained stability within the overseas alternate market, citing elevated capital inflows, improved crude oil manufacturing, rising non-oil exports, and lowered imports.
Going ahead, sustaining this momentum will rely on a fragile stability of oil exports, non-oil FX receipts, debt servicing, and coverage path.
For now, nonetheless, the sharp August build-up locations Nigeria on firmer footing, with the reserves at their highest level in practically 4 years.
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