Nigeria recorded a 36.5 percent year-on-year increase in net foreign exchange inflow in the first five months of 2026, reaching $33.76 billion from $24.72 billion during the same period in 2025.
The increase came as the Central Bank of Nigeria continued efforts to improve liquidity, deepen the foreign exchange market and encourage inflows through official and autonomous channels.
Data contained in the CBN’s monthly economic reports showed that total forex inflow rose by eight percent to $50.05 billion in the five months under review, compared with $46.34 billion recorded in the corresponding period of 2025.
At the same time, total foreign exchange outflow declined significantly by 24.6 percent, falling to $16.29 billion from $21.62 billion recorded in the first five months of 2025.
The data showed that forex inflow through the CBN increased by 2.75 percent to $15.30 billion from $14.89 billion a year earlier.
Inflows through autonomous sources recorded a stronger increase, rising by 10.5 percent to $34.76 billion from $31.45 billion in the corresponding period.
On the outflow side, transactions through the CBN declined by 36.3 percent to $10.50 billion from $16.51 billion in the first five months of 2025.
However, forex outflow through autonomous sources increased by 14.6 percent to $5.78 billion from $5.04 billion.
The changes resulted in a net forex inflow of $28.97 billion through autonomous sources during the five-month period, compared with $26.40 billion in the same period of 2025.
The CBN also recorded a positive net forex inflow of $4.80 billion, up from $4.29 billion recorded during the corresponding period of the previous year.
Overall, the combination of increased foreign exchange inflows and lower outflows strengthened Nigeria’s net forex position during the period.
The development comes amid the CBN’s broader efforts to improve transparency and price discovery in the foreign exchange market.
The apex bank has also been encouraging greater participation by banks and other authorised market operators as part of measures aimed at strengthening the functioning of the forex market.
