Naira Spot Rate Little Change on Balanced FX Demand, Supply
The naira rate closed with little change against the US dollar at the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEM), climbing by 30 kobo to end the day at ₦1,488.26 per US dollar from N1,488.56 the previous day.
With the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) keeping its eyes on US dollar liquidity, and export inflows passing through the official window, the forex market continues see adequate level of FX supply to meet corporate demand.
Forex market analysts noted that the naira spot exchange rate movement suggests absence of significant demand for foreign currency at the official window.
Trading details from the Central Bank revealed that the spot rate hit intraday high of N1491 per dollar on Thursday, which was sharp appreciation when compared with N1498 quoted in the previous day.
In the parallel market, the local currency also gained ground against the US dollar, rising 0.29% to settle at an average rate of ₦1,514. The naira outlook remains positive, supported by sustained FX intervention, rising inflows into Nigerian financial markets and growing external reserves.
Foreign reserves increased to $42.202 billion on Wednesday, from $42.169 billion on the back of sustained inflows from oil receipts, remittances, and foreign investment inflows.
In August, Foreign Portfolio Investment (FPI) activity on the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) strengthened in August 2025, rising by 17.7% to ₦171.81 billion (US$112.18 million) from ₦145.95 billion (US$95.17 million) in July.
This represented 18.91% of the total market turnover of ₦908.38 billion. In contrast, domestic investor participation fell sharply, dropping by 55.9% to ₦736.57 billion (US$480.93 million) from ₦1.67 trillion (US$1.09 billion) in July.
Domestic trades accounted for 81.09% of overall market activity, compared to 91.96% in July, with the decline largely linked to the absence of institutional block trades that had significantly boosted July’s volumes. Zenith Bank Gains as Investors Queue for Interim Dividend
