Naira rebounds to 16-week high, trades N1,518/$

The naira extended its recent gains on Monday, strengthening to a four-month high against the US dollar to close at 1518/$ on the official market, the Nigerian Foreign Exchange Market.

Data from the Central Bank of Nigeria showed that the naira appreciated by 0.74 per cent to close at 1518/$ on Monday.

This marks the naira’s strongest performance since March 14, 2025, and the first time it traded below N1520/$ since that period, signalling a wave of positive momentum for the nation’s currency.

On March 14, the naira closed trading at 1517.93/$, a major strengthening from 1547.81/$ on the previous day.

It had plummeted by 0.11 per cent in the previous week to close at 1530.26/$ on Friday.

Analysts at Anchoria Limited in its market update have made projection that the naira would trade within a stable range of 1515–1535/$ this week. Pegging their projection on improved FX liquidity and renewed CBN intervention, including last week’s $50m sale and a successful OMO auction that attracted foreign investor interest.

“These actions have helped ease demand pressures and boost market confidence, keeping volatility low,” Anchoria Limited said in a note.

“We expect the naira should stay stable, supported by CBN supply and exporter inflows, as upside pressure may arise from rising demand,” the statement added.

In the past week, the CBN conducted an OMO auction in the primary market, offering a total of N600bn across two tenors, 272-day and 363-day. Total subscriptions stood at N2.17tn, with the CBN allotting N1.25tn. The 272-day instrument recorded no sale, while the 363-day instrument settled at 21.99 per cent.

Cowry Assets Management Limited, in its weekly market report, also predicted a positive and stable outing for the naira this week anchored on continued “CBN intervention, FX reforms gaining traction, and steady oil export revenues; the groundwork is gradually being laid for currency recovery and improved market sentiment.”

The firm put the blame of the depreciation of the past week on the rising demand for the U.S. dollar and constrained FX supply. Just as the naira depreciated at the official market, it had a similar run at the parallel market, depreciating by 0.97 per cent to settle at an average of 1,545/$1, down from 1,530/$1 the previous week.

“This pullback erased part of the currency’s recent gains, even as the Central Bank of Nigeria continued its interventions to defend the naira. The rising gap between dollar demand and supply remains a core challenge, though recent reforms suggest a path toward greater currency stability in the near term,” the Cowry Assets weekly report noted .

At the parallel market, the naira closed trading at 1,540 per dollar, showing an appreciation.