Data released by the Central Bank of Nigeria on the 1st of June 2018, shows that Nigeria’s foreign exchange reserves went up 0.27 percent from a month ago. As at May 30, Nigeria’s foreign reserves stood at $47.62 billion, meaning it rose by almost $2 billion since it was last recorded.
Nigeria’s Forex reserves have been rising steadily since the beginning of the year, due to the implementation of CBN policies that discouraged unnecessary importation, reducing the costs thereof, and also increased the inflow from both oil and non-oil exports.
Reserves started the year at $39.3 billion, rose to $42.8 billion by February, grew by about $3.2 billion between February and March 2018, before now hitting the new high of $47.62 billion in May.
Though the Forex reserves peaked at $47.799 billion on May 18, CBN’s decision to increase dollar sales and reduce the Naira’s depreciation brought down the Forex reserves to $47.62 at the end of the month.
Below is the Ventures Africa Weekly Economic Index, for the week ending 1st of June 2018. This economic index gives you a glimpse into other recent activities in Nigeria’s economy as well as changes and prices that could affect the economy.
Nigerian Stock Exchange
Data released by the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE), as of 1st of June 2018 2018, showed that the All-Share Index depreciated by 6.38 percent from the previous week ending 25th May 2018. Market capitalization at the close of trading during the week under review was N13.336 trillion which was a 6.38 percent decrease from N14.244 trillion recorded the previous week. The All Share Index for the week under review closed at 36,816.29.
Top five price gainers and decliners in the week under review:
Top five price gainers
Eterna Plc.
Cement Co. of North. Nig. Plc.
Mutual Benefits Assurance Plc.
Jaiz Bank Plc.
Dangote Sugar Refinery Plc.
Top five price decliners
International Breweries Plc.
Lafarge Africa Plc.
Forte Oil Plc.
Nigerian Brew Plc.
Nestle Nigeria Plc.
How did the Naira fare?
In the week under review, the Naira appreciated against the Dollar in the parallel market. It was sold at N360/$ on Friday 1st of June 2018, increasing in value from N361/$ it recorded on the 25th of May 2018.
How did the price of oil fare?
Oil prices (Brent crude) rose slightly last week from $76.37 to $76.86. This slight hike followed a dip in prices after Saudi Arabia and Russia announced last week that they are discussing increasing oil outputs. An OPEC concessional supply cut led to a record increase in oil prices this year, reaching a four year high of $80 last month.
