TUE FEB 03 2026-theGBJournal| The naira fell slightly against the benchmark US dollar on Monday after strong gains last week saw it rise 2.47% week-on-week to close at N1,386.55/US$, from 1,421.63/US$ at the official NAFEM window.
Similarly, in the parallel market, the Naira gained 1.35% to settle at N1,465.00/US$, compared with N1,485.00/US$ previously.
However, the premium between the parallel market and the official rate stayed wide at N78.45.
This divergence largely reflects sustained demand for foreign currency in the informal market, driven by precautionary dollarisation and positioning ahead of the 2027 election cycle, rather than immediate pressures in the official FX market.
Nigeria’s gross external reserves increased modestly, rising by US$163.38 million week-on-week to US$46.18 billion from US$46.01 billion, representing a 0.24% increase.
The gradual accretion in reserves provides additional support for the Central Bank of Nigeria’s ongoing efforts to manage FX liquidity and maintain market confidence.
Meanwhile, fixed income market capitalization closed at N51.21 trillion suggesting sustained sovereign borrowing and active secondary trading.
Activities in the Treasury bills secondary market were bullish, as the average yield contracted by 3bps to 18.2% amid stable liquidity conditions and continued attraction of risk-free assets and lingering inflation concerns.
Across the curve, the average yield contracted at the short (-2bps), mid (-2bps) and long (-4bps) segments due to the demand for the 52DTM (-3bps), 136DTM (-3bps) and 318DTM (-16bps) bills, respectively.
Conversely, the average yield expanded by 7bps to 21.6% in the OMO segment.
Elsewhere, the FGN bond secondary market traded on a bullish note, as the average yield contracted by 5bps to 16.2%.
Across the benchmark curve, the average yield expanded at the short (+3bps) end, due to profit-taking activities on the JUL-2030 (+7bps) bond, but contracted at the mid (-28bps) segment, driven by demand for the JUN-2033 (-81bps) bonds. The average yield remained unchanged at the long end.
The overnight lending rate contracted by 336bps to 23.0%, in the absence of any significant funding pressure.
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