Foreign reserves gain $53.641m in two weeks

The nation’s foreign reserves rose by $53.641m from $45.046bn on July 1 to $45.099bn as of July 15, the latest figures from the Central Bank of Nigeria have revealed.

Records revealed that the reserves, which had suffered significant declines in the past, had been maintaining a steady rise of recent.

Godwin Emefiele, the Central Bank governor, said with concerted efforts by the monetary and fiscal authorities, it implemented a series of measures which led to the recovery of the economy from the recession by the first quarter of 2017.

He said, “Building on these efforts, I am delighted to note that our external reserves have risen from $23bn in October 2016 to over $45bn by June 2019. Inflation has dropped from 18.72 per cent in January 2017 to 11.40 per cent in May 2019.

“Our CBN purchasing manufacturers index has risen for 26 consecutive months since March 2017, indicating continuous growth in the manufacturing sector, as a result of measures implemented by the CBN which has improved access to raw materials and finance for manufacturing firms.

“GDP growth has risen for seven consecutive quarters following the recession, and our exchange rate has appreciated from over N525/$1 in February 2017 at the BDC window to N360/$1. With improved inflow of foreign exchange, the exchange rate has remained stable around N360/$1 for the past 27 months.”

Emefiele had earlier said that because crude oil was a major source of the country’s foreign exchange, the nation’s economy became sensitive to fluctuations in the price of crude oil.

“Significant declines in the price of crude oil not only reduced Nigeria’s export earnings, but the nation was also subjected to higher inflation and lower growth, given our dependence on imported goods,” he had said.