Forex inflow rises 36.5% to $33.76bn in five months

By Frontline Reporters

Nigeria’s net foreign exchange (forex) inflow rose by 36.5 percent year-on-year (YoY) to $33.76 billion in the first five months of 2026 (5M’26), up from $24.72 billion recorded in the corresponding period of 2025 (5M’25).

The increase was driven by higher forex inflows and a significant decline in outflows during the period, according to data from the Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) monthly economic reports.

Aggregate forex inflow rose by eight percent to $50.05 billion in 5M’26, compared with $46.34 billion in the same period of 2025.

At the same time, aggregate forex outflow declined by 24.6 percent to $16.29 billion from $21.62 billion in 5M’25.

The CBN reported that forex inflow through the bank increased by 2.75 percent to $15.30 billion from $14.89 billion, while inflow through autonomous sources rose by 10.5 percent to $34.76 billion from $31.45 billion.

On the outflow side, forex outflow through the CBN fell by 36.3 percent to $10.50 billion from $16.51 billion in the corresponding period of 2025.

In contrast, outflow through autonomous sources increased by 14.6 percent to $5.78 billion from $5.04 billion.

As a result, autonomous sources recorded a net forex inflow of $28.97 billion in 5M’26, compared with $26.40 billion in 5M’25.

The CBN also recorded a net forex inflow of $4.80 billion during the period, up from $4.29 billion a year earlier.

The increase in net forex inflow reflects stronger gross inflows alongside lower overall outflows during the five-month period.

The development comes amid the CBN’s ongoing reforms aimed at improving transparency and price discovery in the foreign exchange market, as well as strengthening liquidity and participation by banks and other authorised market operators.