Data from the Nigerian Foreign Exchange Market (NFEM) showed that the naira rose by N4.31 kobo, or 0.34 percent, to N1,430.84 per dollar on Friday, up from N1,435.75/$ recorded on December 31, 2025.
The currency’s performance fluctuated in the first days of the year: it strengthened to N1,442.51/$ on Monday, declined to N1,445.68/$ on Tuesday, and rebounded to N1,435.75/$ on Wednesday.
At the parallel market, however, the naira slipped to N1,495 per dollar on Friday, down 0.34 percent from N1,490/$ on the last trading day of 2025. The parallel rate opened the week at N1,485/$ on Monday, depreciated to N1,490/$ on Tuesday, and remained unchanged on Wednesday.
In his New Year message, President Bola Tinubu highlighted that Nigeria’s $45.4 billion foreign reserves provided a buffer against external shocks and expressed confidence that the reserves would further strengthen in 2026.
“Supported by sound monetary policy management, our foreign reserves stood at $45.4 billion as of December 29, 2025, providing a substantial buffer against external shocks for the naira,” Tinubu said. He added that this position is expected to improve in the new year.