Confusion as Cardoso Says External Reserves at $39.07bn, CBN Data Shows $37.39bn

By Adedapo Adesanya

The Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Mr Yemi Cardoso, at the end of the 297th Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meeting in Abuja on Tuesday, said Nigeria’s external reserves have increased yet again, reaching $39.07 billion as of September 19, 2024.

However, data from the CBN website puts the reserves at $37.39 billion as of the same quoted date, independent checks by Business Post revealed.

This is around $1.68 billion less than what the CBN governor presented at the meeting and contained in the official communique.

The communique released after the MPC briefing read: “The external reserve stood at $39.07 billion as of 19th September 2024 an increase of 17.4 per cent compared with $33.28 billion in the corresponding period of 2023. This represents 8 months of import cover for goods and services and 13 months of imports of goods only.”

The MPC recently urged the CBN to focus on boosting the external reserves and Mr Cardoso reiterated this at the meeting where interest rate was bumped higher by 50 basis points to 27.25 per cent.

To ensure a steady flow of foreign exchange into the country, the CBN plans to double the diaspora remittance inflow this year.

However, this may be due to a delay in updating data by the apex bank.

If true, the increases may come as a result of recent incentives by the CBN to attract more supply through International Money Transfer Operators (IMTOs) as well as other foreign loan disbursements.

The African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) announced the disbursement of $925 million- another tranche of the $3.3 billion crude oil-backed loan agreement it entered into with the NNPC last year bringing the total payment for the facility to $3.175 billion.

The World Bank also recently approved $2.25 billion in loans to Nigeria to boost the country’s economic stability and support its vulnerable populations.

Also, Nigeria closed its first-ever local Dollar-denominated bond, which was oversubscribed by 80 per cent to $900 million.