Nigeria’s external reserves declined by about $855 million, falling from $49.18 billion on April 1, 2026, to $48.33 billion as of May 7, this year.
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) gave these figures in its just released report on the external reserves position, which reflected sustained pressures on the nation’s foreign exchange (FX) buffers despite the monetary measures by the apex bank to moderate the pressures.
Available data from the apex bank’s report reflected that the gross external reserves maintaining a sliding trend all through the month of April to the first week of May this year.
Specifically, the CBN reported that the reserves fell from $49.133 billion on April 2 to $48.940 billion on April 7 and that the value depreciated to $48.675 billion on April 15. The apex bank’s data showed that the external reserves dipped to $48.541 billion on April 20 and by April 30, the reserves had declined to $48.364 billion before ebbing at $48.325 billion on May 7
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However, despite the recent sustained decline in the value of the reserves, the position remained stronger than the levels it stood in the corresponding period in 2025.
According to the CBN data, the nation’s external reserves stood at $38.173 billion on April 2, 2025, before slightly dropping to $37.933 billion as of the end of the month, implying that current reserves level is over $10 billion higher year-on-year.
The improvement in Nigeria’s external reserves over the past year is largely attributable to the apex bank’s sustained FX reform measures, which have significantly moderated the volatility of the FX markets with the attendant positive impacts on the nation’s macroeconomy.
