{"id":462,"date":"2026-05-18T19:50:38","date_gmt":"2026-05-18T16:50:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/naira-slips-on-friday-as-dollar-rate-ends-week-softer-on-fx-reserves-watch\/"},"modified":"2026-05-18T19:50:38","modified_gmt":"2026-05-18T16:50:38","slug":"naira-slips-on-friday-as-dollar-rate-ends-week-softer-on-fx-reserves-watch","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/naira-slips-on-friday-as-dollar-rate-ends-week-softer-on-fx-reserves-watch\/","title":{"rendered":"Naira Slips on Friday as Dollar Rate Ends Week Softer on FX Reserves Watch"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>The Nigerian naira edged lower versus the US dollar on the official foreign-exchange window on Friday, closing out the week on a slightly weaker footing, while the parallel market held steady. The move comes as investors watch the trajectory of the country\u2019s foreign reserves.<\/p>\n<h2>Key takeaways<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li>On Friday, the naira fell to N1,361.39 per dollar at the official market.<\/li>\n<li>That followed Thursday\u2019s official rate of N1,355.85, marking a daily decline of N5.54.<\/li>\n<li>In the black market, the exchange rate was unchanged at N1,393 per dollar on Friday.<\/li>\n<li>Foreign reserves in Nigeria were $48.33 billion as of May 7, 2026.<\/li>\n<li>Overall performance during the week was mixed between the official and parallel exchange markets.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>Official market slips; parallel market unchanged<\/h2>\n<p>The central bank\u2019s figures show that the naira depreciated against the dollar on Friday in the official foreign exchange market. The currency weakened to N1,361.39 per dollar, compared with N1,355.85 traded on Thursday. Measured on a day-to-day basis, this represents a fall of N5.54 versus the US dollar at the official window.<\/p>\n<p>By contrast, the parallel or black market rate did not move. The naira was quoted at N1,393 per dollar on Friday, the same level as the previous day, indicating stability in that segment of the market even as the official rate slid.<\/p>\n<h2>Weekly pattern and reserves remain in focus<\/h2>\n<p>Across the week, the naira\u2019s performance was uneven depending on the exchange channel. While the official market saw a decline from Thursday to Friday, the black market remained flat over the same period. The broader weekly picture therefore reflected mixed movement between the two pricing mechanisms.<\/p>\n<p>Attention is also on Nigeria\u2019s external buffers. Foreign reserves stood at $48.33 billion as of May 7, 2026, with the report noting that the country\u2019s external reserves have continued to trend downward in recent weeks.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The Nigerian naira edged lower versus the US dollar on the official foreign-exchange window on Friday, closing out the week on a slightly weaker footing, while the parallel market held steady. The move comes as investors watch the trajectory of the country\u2019s foreign reserves. Key takeaways On Friday, the naira fell to N1,361.39 per dollar [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":461,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_yoast_wpseo_title":"Naira Falls Friday as FX Reserves Watch Drives Dollar Rate","_yoast_wpseo_metadesc":"Naira weakens on Friday in Nigeria\u2019s FX market, closing near N1,361 per dollar as traders eye foreign reserves and wait for cleare","mma_seo_breadcrumb_text":"","mma_seo_breadcrumb_url":"","mma_seo_breadcrumb_hide_ui":"","mma_seo_breadcrumb_labels":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-462","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","","category-business"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.6 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Naira Falls Friday as FX Reserves Watch Drives Dollar Rate<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Naira weakens on Friday in Nigeria\u2019s FX market, closing near N1,361 per dollar as traders eye foreign reserves and wait for cleare\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/naira-slips-on-friday-as-dollar-rate-ends-week-softer-on-fx-reserves-watch\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Naira Falls Friday as FX Reserves Watch Drives Dollar Rate\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Naira weakens on Friday in Nigeria\u2019s FX market, closing near N1,361 per dollar as traders eye foreign reserves and wait for cleare\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/naira-slips-on-friday-as-dollar-rate-ends-week-softer-on-fx-reserves-watch\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Zalebs\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-05-18T16:50:38+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/dollar-naira-exchange-rate-today-9375.webp\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1184\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"732\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/webp\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Zibuyile Dladla\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Zibuyile Dladla\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/zalebs.com\\\/news\\\/naira-slips-on-friday-as-dollar-rate-ends-week-softer-on-fx-reserves-watch\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/zalebs.com\\\/news\\\/naira-slips-on-friday-as-dollar-rate-ends-week-softer-on-fx-reserves-watch\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Zibuyile Dladla\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/zalebs.com\\\/news\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/6da1a9a659a2b9fb37587bf050637d1e\"},\"headline\":\"Naira Slips on Friday as Dollar Rate Ends Week Softer on FX Reserves Watch\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-05-18T16:50:38+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/zalebs.com\\\/news\\\/naira-slips-on-friday-as-dollar-rate-ends-week-softer-on-fx-reserves-watch\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":315,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/zalebs.com\\\/news\\\/naira-slips-on-friday-as-dollar-rate-ends-week-softer-on-fx-reserves-watch\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/zalebs.com\\\/news\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/05\\\/dollar-naira-exchange-rate-today-9375.webp\",\"articleSection\":[\"Business\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-ZA\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/zalebs.com\\\/news\\\/naira-slips-on-friday-as-dollar-rate-ends-week-softer-on-fx-reserves-watch\\\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/zalebs.com\\\/news\\\/naira-slips-on-friday-as-dollar-rate-ends-week-softer-on-fx-reserves-watch\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/zalebs.com\\\/news\\\/naira-slips-on-friday-as-dollar-rate-ends-week-softer-on-fx-reserves-watch\\\/\",\"name\":\"Naira Falls Friday as FX Reserves Watch Drives Dollar Rate\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/zalebs.com\\\/news\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/zalebs.com\\\/news\\\/naira-slips-on-friday-as-dollar-rate-ends-week-softer-on-fx-reserves-watch\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/zalebs.com\\\/news\\\/naira-slips-on-friday-as-dollar-rate-ends-week-softer-on-fx-reserves-watch\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/zalebs.com\\\/news\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/05\\\/dollar-naira-exchange-rate-today-9375.webp\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-05-18T16:50:38+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/zalebs.com\\\/news\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/6da1a9a659a2b9fb37587bf050637d1e\"},\"description\":\"Naira weakens on Friday in Nigeria\u2019s FX market, closing near N1,361 per dollar as traders eye foreign reserves and wait for cleare\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/zalebs.com\\\/news\\\/naira-slips-on-friday-as-dollar-rate-ends-week-softer-on-fx-reserves-watch\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-ZA\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/zalebs.com\\\/news\\\/naira-slips-on-friday-as-dollar-rate-ends-week-softer-on-fx-reserves-watch\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-ZA\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/zalebs.com\\\/news\\\/naira-slips-on-friday-as-dollar-rate-ends-week-softer-on-fx-reserves-watch\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/zalebs.com\\\/news\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/05\\\/dollar-naira-exchange-rate-today-9375.webp\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/zalebs.com\\\/news\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/05\\\/dollar-naira-exchange-rate-today-9375.webp\",\"width\":1184,\"height\":732},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/zalebs.com\\\/news\\\/naira-slips-on-friday-as-dollar-rate-ends-week-softer-on-fx-reserves-watch\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/zalebs.com\\\/news\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Naira Slips on Friday as Dollar Rate Ends Week Softer on FX Reserves Watch\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/zalebs.com\\\/news\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/zalebs.com\\\/news\\\/\",\"name\":\"Zalebs\",\"description\":\"\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/zalebs.com\\\/news\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-ZA\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/zalebs.com\\\/news\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/6da1a9a659a2b9fb37587bf050637d1e\",\"name\":\"Zibuyile Dladla\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-ZA\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/1f581f0bb57ed4fd97eeb8353242d5a3c12548c2ff26373e9e5be1e00d4fad05?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/1f581f0bb57ed4fd97eeb8353242d5a3c12548c2ff26373e9e5be1e00d4fad05?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/1f581f0bb57ed4fd97eeb8353242d5a3c12548c2ff26373e9e5be1e00d4fad05?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Zibuyile Dladla\"},\"description\":\"Zibuyile began her media journey as a sales intern at Mediamark (Kagiso Media) before moving into digital content creation for ZAlebs.com. Over four years, she helped evolve the platform from a simple blog into one of South Africa\u2019s leading independent entertainment news sites. Following ZAlebs\u2019 transition to Celebrity Worx in 2016, Zibuyile was promoted to Executive Editor, recognized for her sharp audience insight and ability to match editorial with branded content. Highlights of her time include a Bookmark Award nomination, judging TLC\u2019s Next Great Presenter, reporting from the MTV EMAs, and building partnerships with radio stations like YFM, Cliff Central, and Good Hope FM. Her editorial work also expanded to include fast-growing digital verticals\u2014such as lifestyle tech, online entertainment, and gambling-related content\u2014tailored to evolving reader interests and brand opportunities.\",\"sameAs\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/za.linkedin.com\\\/in\\\/zibuyile-dladla-9a26628a\"],\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/zalebs.com\\\/news\\\/author\\\/zibuyile-dladla\\\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Naira Falls Friday as FX Reserves Watch Drives Dollar Rate","description":"Naira weakens on Friday in Nigeria\u2019s FX market, closing near N1,361 per dollar as traders eye foreign reserves and wait for cleare","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/naira-slips-on-friday-as-dollar-rate-ends-week-softer-on-fx-reserves-watch\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Naira Falls Friday as FX Reserves Watch Drives Dollar Rate","og_description":"Naira weakens on Friday in Nigeria\u2019s FX market, closing near N1,361 per dollar as traders eye foreign reserves and wait for cleare","og_url":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/naira-slips-on-friday-as-dollar-rate-ends-week-softer-on-fx-reserves-watch\/","og_site_name":"Zalebs","article_published_time":"2026-05-18T16:50:38+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1184,"height":732,"url":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/dollar-naira-exchange-rate-today-9375.webp","type":"image\/webp"}],"author":"Zibuyile Dladla","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Zibuyile Dladla","Est. reading time":"2 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/naira-slips-on-friday-as-dollar-rate-ends-week-softer-on-fx-reserves-watch\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/naira-slips-on-friday-as-dollar-rate-ends-week-softer-on-fx-reserves-watch\/"},"author":{"name":"Zibuyile Dladla","@id":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/#\/schema\/person\/6da1a9a659a2b9fb37587bf050637d1e"},"headline":"Naira Slips on Friday as Dollar Rate Ends Week Softer on FX Reserves Watch","datePublished":"2026-05-18T16:50:38+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/naira-slips-on-friday-as-dollar-rate-ends-week-softer-on-fx-reserves-watch\/"},"wordCount":315,"commentCount":0,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/naira-slips-on-friday-as-dollar-rate-ends-week-softer-on-fx-reserves-watch\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/dollar-naira-exchange-rate-today-9375.webp","articleSection":["Business"],"inLanguage":"en-ZA","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/naira-slips-on-friday-as-dollar-rate-ends-week-softer-on-fx-reserves-watch\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/naira-slips-on-friday-as-dollar-rate-ends-week-softer-on-fx-reserves-watch\/","url":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/naira-slips-on-friday-as-dollar-rate-ends-week-softer-on-fx-reserves-watch\/","name":"Naira Falls Friday as FX Reserves Watch Drives Dollar Rate","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/naira-slips-on-friday-as-dollar-rate-ends-week-softer-on-fx-reserves-watch\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/naira-slips-on-friday-as-dollar-rate-ends-week-softer-on-fx-reserves-watch\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/dollar-naira-exchange-rate-today-9375.webp","datePublished":"2026-05-18T16:50:38+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/#\/schema\/person\/6da1a9a659a2b9fb37587bf050637d1e"},"description":"Naira weakens on Friday in Nigeria\u2019s FX market, closing near N1,361 per dollar as traders eye foreign reserves and wait for cleare","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/naira-slips-on-friday-as-dollar-rate-ends-week-softer-on-fx-reserves-watch\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-ZA","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/naira-slips-on-friday-as-dollar-rate-ends-week-softer-on-fx-reserves-watch\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-ZA","@id":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/naira-slips-on-friday-as-dollar-rate-ends-week-softer-on-fx-reserves-watch\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/dollar-naira-exchange-rate-today-9375.webp","contentUrl":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/dollar-naira-exchange-rate-today-9375.webp","width":1184,"height":732},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/naira-slips-on-friday-as-dollar-rate-ends-week-softer-on-fx-reserves-watch\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Naira Slips on Friday as Dollar Rate Ends Week Softer on FX Reserves Watch"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/#website","url":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/","name":"Zalebs","description":"","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-ZA"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/#\/schema\/person\/6da1a9a659a2b9fb37587bf050637d1e","name":"Zibuyile Dladla","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-ZA","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/1f581f0bb57ed4fd97eeb8353242d5a3c12548c2ff26373e9e5be1e00d4fad05?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/1f581f0bb57ed4fd97eeb8353242d5a3c12548c2ff26373e9e5be1e00d4fad05?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/1f581f0bb57ed4fd97eeb8353242d5a3c12548c2ff26373e9e5be1e00d4fad05?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Zibuyile Dladla"},"description":"Zibuyile began her media journey as a sales intern at Mediamark (Kagiso Media) before moving into digital content creation for ZAlebs.com. Over four years, she helped evolve the platform from a simple blog into one of South Africa\u2019s leading independent entertainment news sites. Following ZAlebs\u2019 transition to Celebrity Worx in 2016, Zibuyile was promoted to Executive Editor, recognized for her sharp audience insight and ability to match editorial with branded content. Highlights of her time include a Bookmark Award nomination, judging TLC\u2019s Next Great Presenter, reporting from the MTV EMAs, and building partnerships with radio stations like YFM, Cliff Central, and Good Hope FM. Her editorial work also expanded to include fast-growing digital verticals\u2014such as lifestyle tech, online entertainment, and gambling-related content\u2014tailored to evolving reader interests and brand opportunities.","sameAs":["https:\/\/za.linkedin.com\/in\/zibuyile-dladla-9a26628a"],"url":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/author\/zibuyile-dladla\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/462","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=462"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/462\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/461"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=462"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=462"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=462"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}