Naira appreciates to N1,400/$ at official market, strongest performance in 20 months
The naira strengthened to N1,400.47 against the US dollar at the official foreign exchange market on Wednesday, according to data from the Nigerian Foreign Exchange Market (NFEM).
The figure represents a gain of N0.75, or 0.05 percent, compared with the N1,401.22 per dollar recorded on January 27. This marks the first time the naira has traded around the N1,400 level since May 2024.
The latest exchange rate is also the strongest performance recorded since the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) introduced the Electronic Foreign Exchange Matching System (EFEMS).
Official market data showed that the currency has maintained its upward momentum from N1,418.95 on January 26, improving further to N1,401.22 on January 27 before settling at N1,400.47 on Wednesday.
The naira also appreciated at the parallel market, where it traded at N1,470 per dollar on January 28 , its strongest level since December 1, 2025. The currency had exchanged at N1,490 per dollar from January 26 through January 27 before gaining further ground.
In his New Year address, President Bola Tinubu attributed the relative stability of the naira to Nigeria’s foreign exchange reserves, noting that they have helped cushion the currency against external shocks and are expected to improve further in 2026.
“We expect this position to strengthen further in the new year,” the president said.
Nigeria’s foreign reserves stood at $46 billion as of January 22, the highest level recorded in nearly eight years.
