Nigeria’s external reserves have risen to $50.12 billion, marking their highest level in more than 17 years and highlighting a significant improvement in the country’s external position over the past year.

Latest data showed that gross external reserves stood at $50.12 billion as of June 5, 2026, compared with $38.28 billion recorded on June 5, 2025, representing a year-on-year increase of 30.9 per cent.

The latest figure represents an addition of approximately $11.84 billion to the nation’s reserve stock within 12 months and marks the first time reserves have crossed the $50 billion threshold since January 26, 2009, when they stood at $50.58 billion.

The development places Nigeria’s reserves at their strongest level in over 17 years, reflecting a remarkable recovery from the levels recorded in recent years and strengthening the country’s foreign currency buffers.

Historical data show that although reserves remain below the all-time high of $64.85 billion recorded on August 8, 2008, the latest position is the strongest since the aftermath of the global financial crisis. At the current level, reserves are approximately $14.73 billion below that record peak but substantially higher than levels recorded over much of the past decade.

The reserve build-up has been particularly pronounced over the past year. From $38.28 billion on June 5, 2025, reserves climbed steadily to reach $50.12 billion by June 5, 2026, reflecting one of the strongest annual increases in recent years.

Over the past 12 months, Nigeria’s external reserves have followed a largely upward trajectory, rising from $37.21 billion on June 30, 2025 to $50.12 billion on June 5, 2026.

Reserves closed July 2025 at $39.36 billion, increased to $41.31 billion in August, and rose further to $42.35 billion by September. The upward trend continued through the final quarter of 2025, reaching $43.20 billion in October, $44.67 billion in November and $45.50 billion by December 31, 2025.

The build-up accelerated in 2026, with reserves climbing to $46.28 billion at the end of January and surging to $49.69 billion by February 27. Although reserves eased slightly to $49.24 billion at the end of March and $48.36 billion at the end of April, the decline proved temporary as holdings rebounded to $49.58 billion by May 29 before reaching a new multi-year high of $50.12 billion on June 5, 2026.

Within the 12-month period under review, the lowest reserves level was $37.18 billion on July 3, 2025, while the highest was the current $50.12 billion, representing an increase of about $12.94 billion between the low and high points.

Meanwhile, Open Market Operation (OMO) bills dominated activity in Nigeria’s fixed income secondary market yesterday, attracting N655.88 billion in transactions as investors continued to favour short-term securities offering some of the highest yields in the market.

Data from the Fixed Income Dashboard showed that total turnover across fixed income instruments stood at N882.35 billion from 346 trades, with OMO bills accounting for nearly three-quarters of the value traded during the session.

The OMO segment not only emerged as the market’s biggest contributor by value, but also recorded 127 trades involving 15 participants, underscoring sustained demand for the short-dated instruments.

Treasury bills recorded turnover of N74.86 billion from 132 trades involving 23 participants, while Federal Government of Nigeria (FGN) bonds accounted for N121.61 billion across 81 transactions. Sukuk instruments recorded N30 billion from six deals.

Investor interest in the OMO market was concentrated in a handful of maturities. The July 28, 2026, OMO bill was the most actively traded instrument, recording N202.25 billion in transactions across 25 deals. This was followed by the June 23, 2026, OMO bill, which attracted N100 billion from 10 trades.

Other actively traded OMO instruments included the October 13, 2026, bill, which recorded N88.14 billion, and the September 22, 2026, bill with N87 billion in turnover.

Yields in the segment remained elevated. The June 23, 2026, and July 28, 2026 OMO bills closed at yields of 21.68 per cent and 21.63 per cent, respectively, while yields across the market ranged from 18.53 per cent to 21.68 per cent, depending on tenor.

In the Treasury bills market, activity was concentrated in medium-dated instruments. The September 24, 2026 bill led trading with N16 billion across 32 deals, while the June 3, 2027, instrument recorded N13.16 billion from 22 transactions. The December 10, 2026 bill also attracted significant interest with N13 billion traded across 15 deals.

Treasury bill yields ranged between 16.02 per cent and 19.48 per cent. The June 3, 2027, bill closed at the highest yield of 19.48 per cent, while the July 9, 2026, bill closed at 16.02 per cent.

The bond market witnessed notable activity in longer-dated securities. The April 18, 2037, FGN bond was the most traded bond, recording N44.6 billion across 13 deals. The January 29, 2035 bond followed with N37.54 billion from 18 trades, while the April 17, 2029 bond generated N22.57 billion from 21 transactions.

Bond yields remained relatively stable, with most securities closing within the 16.70 per cent to 17.50 per cent range.

Meanwhile, the Sukuk segment recorded N30 billion in turnover from six deals. The October 2033 Sukuk closed at a yield of 14.80 per cent.

The trading pattern suggests that investors remained focused on locking in attractive short-term returns, with OMO bills attracting the bulk of market liquidity as yields in the segment continued to outpace those available in Treasury bills, bonds and Sukuk instruments. (THISDAY)

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