Nigeria’s external reserves declined by $731 million in the first three weeks of April 2026, underscoring persistent pressure on the country’s foreign exchange buffers.
Data from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) shows reserves fell from $49.18 billion on April 1 to $48.45 billion as of April 23—an average weekly decline of about $233 million.
The latest movement extends a broader trend of drawdowns, highlighting the strain on monetary authorities as they navigate exchange rate stability, liquidity management, and external obligations.
CBN Governor, Olayemi Cardoso, recently downplayed concerns, stating that the decline in reserves should not be a cause for alarm.
A breakdown of the data indicates the sharpest drop occurred early in the month, before moderating toward the end of April. Reserves fell from $49.18 billion to $48.81 billion between April 1 and April 10, reflecting stronger outflows.
Between April 13 and April 17, reserves declined more gradually—from $48.72 billion to $48.62 billion—while between April 20 and April 23, they slipped marginally from $48.54 billion to $48.45 billion, suggesting a slowdown in outflows.
Analysts attribute the early-month decline to intensified foreign exchange interventions and the settlement of external obligations. The latter moderation may reflect reduced intervention activity or improved inflow support.
The April decline follows similar pressure in March, when reserves dropped from above $50.08 billion on March 12 to $49.61 billion by March 23, reinforcing concerns about sustained external liquidity management.
Despite the recent dip, reserve levels remain significantly higher than the same period in 2025, when they stood at around $37.83 billion. In contrast, reserves had risen by about $509 million in the first 22 days of January 2026, signalling stronger inflows at the time.
Historically, reserve levels have shown short-term volatility. For instance, in October 2018, reserves fell by $1.1 billion within two weeks.
These fluctuations are typically driven by shifts in oil revenues, foreign exchange interventions, and external debt servicing.
Before the reforms introduced under President Bola Tinubu, Nigeria operated a tightly managed foreign exchange regime, with the central bank playing a dominant role in supplying foreign currency across multiple exchange rate windows.
Despite current pressures, the CBN maintains an optimistic outlook, projecting reserves could rise to $51 billion by the end of 2026 as part of its broader macroeconomic stabilisation and confidence-restoration strategy.
