Nigeria’s External Reserves Fall by $1.46bn

Nigeria’s external reserves fell by $1.46bn between January and March, according to figures obtained from the Central Bank of Nigeria.

The reserves ended February 27, 2023 at $36.67bn.

Figures obtained from the CBN’s data on movement of external reserves, showed that the reserves, which stood at $36.99bn at the end of January, 1, 2023, fell to $35.53bn by the end of March, 30, 2023.

At the last Monetary Policy Committee in Abuja in March, the Governor of the CBN, attributed the decline in the external reserves to the fall in crude oil price.

“The committee, however, noted the marginal decline in the level of gross external reserves to $36.13bn in February 2023, from $36.4bn in January 2023, a decrease of 0.7 per cent, reflecting the downtrend in crude oil prices, as global uncertainties persist,” he said.

According to the CBN data, Nigeria’s external reserves fell by $3.43bn in 2022, from $40.52bn as of the end of December 31, 2021, to $37.09bn as of the end of December 29, 2022.

Earlier in 2022, the CBN launched a programme tagged ‘RT200 FX Programme’ to boost forex supply in the country through the non-oil sector in the next three to five years.

Punch/Hauwa Abu