Naira Depreciates Against Dollar as FX Supply, Demand Shift
The naira softened against the US dollar on Wednesday as forex market liquidity eased amidst growing demand for non-crude oil imports into the country.
The local unit lost 0.07% against the US dollar at the official window, closing at ₦1,331.7679/$ according to a daily FX update released by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), from the previous day’s quote.
Transactions in the interbank FX market were executed between N1330.5000 and N1332.9900 per US dollar, a marginal shift from the previous day’s quote. Supply weakened as foreign portfolio investors’ FX, exporters/importers, and non-bank corporate dollar inflows eased amid Apex Bank intervention.
At the Nigerian Foreign Exchange Market (NFEM), trading activity among market makers declined in volume, and the aggregate value of deals closed. Interbank FX turnover fell sharply to $72.475 million, down by approximately 77% from $313.545 million the previous day.
The number of FX deals in the interbank market also fell to 83, down from 147 the previous day, CBN data revealed. The local currency gained 0.52% against the British pound and 0.60% against the euro, at ₦1,757.93/£ and ₦1,489.05/€, according to AIICO Capital Limited FX update on Wednesday.
Foreign exchange reserves climbed by about $2.72 million to about $54.983 billion on 06 October 2026. Year to date, the dollar is down 7.24% against the Naira at the official window.
In the global commodity market, oil prices fell on Wednesday in choppy trade after the International Energy Agency agreed to speed up oil stock releases and prioritise diesel to curb record-high fuel prices as the Iran war squeezes global supplies.
Brent crude futures were down 50 cents, or 0.5%, to $100.08 a barrel. US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures were down $1.18, or 1.32%, to $88.26.
The IEA said completing previously announced releases as quickly as possible could bring around 100 million barrels to market, although analysts and some governments said the figure did not necessarily represent a fresh intervention of that size. Naira Drops, FX Gap Widens as Foreign Reserves Hit $54.92bn
