The Naira, in the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEX) on Thursday, April 3, further appreciated against the United States Dollar by N4.52 or 0.33 per cent to N1,374.94/$1 from N1,379.46/$1.
Equally, the domestic currency gained against the Pound Sterling in the official market by N3.34 during the session to close at N1,858.24/£1 compared to the previous rate of N1,861.58/£1, and against the Euro, it improved by N5.29 to sell at N1,607.58/€1 versus N1,612.87/€1.
At the GTBank FX counter, the Nigerian Naira gained N4 against the Dollar to settle at N1,384/$1 versus Wednesday’s closing price of N1,389/$1, and at the parallel market, it improved by N5 to trade at N1,385/$1 compared with the N1,390/$1 it was transacted a day earlier.
Nigeria’s external reserves, which provide the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) with a buffer to support the Naira, continued their downward trend, declining to $48.36 billion as of April 29, 2026, according to data.
Market activity weakened sharply, with the NAFEM recording zero deals on Thursday, down from 393 deals on Wednesday. Total turnover in the official window also dropped from $802.44 million to zero, underscoring a severe liquidity squeeze.
Thursday’s price formation was driven entirely by the interbank segment, where turnover also fell significantly to $58.03 million from $249.91 million, suggesting that liquidity pressures extended across the broader FX market.
As for the cryptocurrency market, prices were up amid looming US inflation data, while high oil prices and rising bond yields weigh on risk assets.
The appreciation faces headwinds in the form of US March PCE inflation, which lands as oil prices keep pressure on risk assets, as well as reduced traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, which has kept energy markets fragile.
Dogecoin (DOGE) rose by 1.8 per cent to trade at $0.1082, Bitcoin (BTC) appreciated to $76,987.59, Ethereum (ETH) grew by 1.2 per cent to $2,276.11, Cardano (ADA) added 1.1 per cent to close at $0.2484, and Solana (SOL) soared by 1.1 per cent to $83.89.
Further, TRON (TRX) increased by 0.7 per cent to $0.3224, Ripple (XRP) jumped 0.4 per cent to $1.37, and Binance Coin (BNB) expanded by 0.2 per cent to $616.67, while the US Dollar Tether (USDT) and the US Dollar Coin (USDC) closed flat at $1.00 each.