NFEM turnover plunges to $196.7M (7-week low) as naira trades stable despite Friday's sharper drop

Turnover on Nigeria's Foreign Exchange Market fell to $196.7 million on Monday, September 28, 2026—its lowest level in seven weeks according to CBN data. This represents a 56.24% decline from Friday's $449.5 million and 60.04% below Thursday's $492.11 million, with only 206 deals recorded (including 37 interbank) versus 290 on Friday and 305 on Thursday. Despite the steep activity drop, the naira remained stable, closing at N1,331.50/$ (vs. N1,330/$ Friday) after trading between N1,330/$ and N1,332/$ with a weighted average of N1,331.3292/$. The current turnover is 87% below the July 21 peak of $1.53 billion and follows a weekly trend where NFEM activity fell to $2.25 billion for the week ended September 25 (down 17.7% prior week). This contraction occurs as Nigeria's external reserves exceed $55 billion—the highest in over 18 years—and after the CBN cut the Monetary Policy Rate by 350 basis points to 23% last week from 26.5%. The disconnect between low trading volume and exchange rate stability suggests market participants may be awaiting clearer policy impact despite improved reserve buffers. With reserves at 18-year highs and MPR at 23%, does low forex turnover signal market confidence in stability or hesitation pending further policy transmission?

SOURCE: https://nairametrics.com/2026/09/29/nfem-turnover-plunges-56-to-196-7-million-lowest-in-seven-weeks/