FX Market Inflows Drop by 5.6% in April
The Financial Market Dealers Quotation (FMDQ) in its analysis of the Nigerian economy for April 2025, has said that the total inflows into the country’s exchange market dropped by 5.7 percent to $6.67 billion when compared to March with $3.90 billion.
The body in its statistics of the United States, also said that its economy contracted by 0.3 percent in Q1 2025, marking the first quarterly decline since Q1- 2022 (-1.0% q/q).
FMDQ in its report had attributed the decline in the inflows into the Nigerian Foreign Exchange Market (NFEM) to drop from foreign sources, which stood at 17.9 percent of total inflows and fell by 16.5 percent to $657.40 million, while March stood at $787.20 million.
This marked the lowest level of inflows in seven months for the country, the statistics said.
It added that inflows from the other corporates (-40.5%) and FPI (-15.7% m/m) segments recorded lower accretion, while inflows from the Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) (+112.7% m/m) segment increased.
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It pointed out that inflows from local sources (82.1% of total inflows) declined marginally by 2.9% m/m to $3.02 billion, while March was $3.11 billion driven by declines in inflows from the exporters/importers (-23.9% m/m) and non-bank corporates (-23.3% m/m) segments, amid a surge in the inflows from the individuals (+125.4% m/m) and the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) with growth of 43.8 percent segments.
The statistics added: “In the short term, we expect foreign exchange inflows to remain relatively strong compared to last year (2024 monthly average: $2.54 billion), due to improved market structure and increased inflows from the CBN.
“However, the existing external pressures, including the global trade tensions and increased global uncertainties, are likely to constrain inflows from the foreign segment, ultimately affecting overall FX liquidity.”
The data added that based on data from the domestic and foreign portfolio report of the Nigerian Exchange total transactions in the Nigerian equities market surged to an all-time high, rising by 119.0 percent to N1.12 trillion in March, while February was N509.47 billion.
