Nigeria’s capital importation soars in H1, 2024

The Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Yemi Cardoso, announced a significant increase in capital importation, which rose to $5.92 billion between January and June 2024.

This was revealed during a press briefing following the 296th Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meeting in Abuja on Tuesday.

Cardoso highlighted that the total capital importation for the first half of 2024 marked a substantial rise from the $1.77 billion recorded in the same period of 2023, reflecting a 234% year-on-year increase.

“Capital importation between January and June reached $5.92 billion compared to $1.77 billion for the corresponding period last year. This is very positive for foreign exchange management,” Cardoso stated.

According to the figures provided by the CBN governor, capital importation in the second quarter of 2024 amounted to $2.55 billion.

Nigeria’s total capital importation surged by 210.16%, from $1.08 billion in Q4 2023 to $3.37 billion in Q1 2024, as per the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).

READ ALSO: CBN sells $122.67 million to 46 authorized FOREX dealers

Out of the $5.92 billion recorded in the first six months of 2024, $3.37 billion was from Q1 2024, indicating a 24% drop in capital importation to $2.55 billion in Q2 2024 on a quarter-on-quarter basis.

Cardoso also noted the rise in inflows into the country. “On the foreign exchange side, we have seen positive outcomes from the tools we have been using recently.

For example, exchange rates have converged, limiting opportunities for arbitrage. Inflows increased by 37.93% between January and May 2024 to $38.8 billion. Net inflows grew 73.4% in May 2024 compared to May 2023,” he said.

Furthermore, diaspora remittances rose to $2.34 billion by the end of June 2024, up from $1.58 billion in the same period last year.

The CBN reported a 39% increase in inflows through International Money Transfer Operators (IMTOs) in Q1 2024 compared to Q1 2023. The total inflow for Q1 2024 was $1.07 billion, an 11% increase from the $965.82 million recorded in Q4 2023.

Recent reforms by the CBN aimed at attracting more dollar supply are credited with triggering this increase.

Cardoso also reported an increase in Nigeria’s external reserves, which rose to $37.05 billion as of July 18, 2024, from $34.70 billion at the end of June 2024.