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External reserves rise, end April at $34.88bn

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Nigeria's external reserve hits six months high at $44.14bn

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has revealed that Nigeria’s foreign exchange reserves rose by 0.17 percent in the month of April.

Data obtained by Ripples Nigeria from CBN website shows foreign exchange reserves held by CBN stood at $34.88 billion at the end of April 2021, up by $60.9 million when compared to the $34.82 billion as at the end of March.

Despite the increase, the reserves are still in one of the lowest levels since the beginning of the year.

The month of January ended with the reserves at $36.30 billion before dropping in February to $35.09 billion.

Read also: Naira gains against dollar as external reserves fall to 15-day low

The Central Bank Governor, Godwin Emefiele, had recently said Nigeria’s external reserves at $35bn were sufficient to finance the country’s seven months’ imports allying fears there were not enough to meet the demand of importers and manufacturers due to scarcity of dollars.

During a CBN/Bankers’ Committee conference Emefiele said efforts were being made to conserve the country’s foreign exchange.

“With the decline in our foreign exchange earnings and subsequent adjustments in the value of the naira vis-à-vis the US dollar, the CBN has continued to implement a demand management framework, which is designed to support improved production of items that can be produced in Nigeria, and further conservation of our external reserves.”

“These measures have helped to prevent a significant decline in our reserves,” he said.

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