The naira started the week stronger against the US dollar, gaining ground at both official and unofficial foreign-exchange windows on Monday, a modest improvement after the currency’s weakness late last week.
Figures from the Central Bank of Nigeria indicated that the naira strengthened to N1,374.91 per dollar on Monday, compared with N1,375.46 that had been quoted at the close of trade on Friday. On that basis, the currency rose by N0.53% versus the level seen at the end of the previous week.
In the parallel or black market, the naira also moved higher. It was quoted up by N5 to N1,395 per dollar over the same period.
Despite the day’s improvement in the exchange rate, Nigeria’s external buffers were unchanged at $48.98 billion as of May 22, 2026, based on the central bank’s latest published data.
The improvement comes after the naira had weakened against the dollar on last Friday, which ended the previous week on a negative note.
