Foreign Exchange Inflows Drop To $5.52bn In May

Foreign exchange inflows into the country fell to $5.52bn in May, the latest figures from the Central Bank of Nigeria have shown.

The CBN stated in its report on foreign exchange flows on in its May report that the foreign exchange inflows into the economy fell by 43.2 per cent in May 2020.

Part of the report read, “Inflows through the CBN and autonomous sources were negatively impacted.

“On a month-on-month basis, foreign exchange flows into the economy declined to $5.52bn in May 2020.

“The decline in inflow, relative to the level in April 2020, was attributed to the lower receipts from oil sources, which fell sharply by 55.2 per cent because of the continued fragility in global crude oil demand.

“Inflow through autonomous sources, particularly invisible purchases, declined by 7.0 per cent to $3.51bn, relative to the preceding month, while there was a 66.2 per cent fall in inflow through the CBN, which stood at $2.01bn in May 2020.”

The report stated that aggregate foreign exchange outflows from the economy decreased by 23.9 per cent to $2.50bn in May.

Outflows through the CBN, however, decreased by 30.9 per cent to $2.19bn below the level in the preceding month.

However, it added, outflow through autonomous sources, mainly imports and invisibles, increased significantly by 152.2 per cent to $0.32bn above the level in April 2020 because of the partial ease in lockdown restrictions.