Amidst the persisting dollar scarcity, Nigeria’s foreign exchange for food, fuel, and other imports rose by 45 percent in the first quarter of 2022 as compared to the same time in 2021.
Nigeria spent about $14.5 billion on importation in six months, a rise from the $10.04 billion in H1 2021, according to the Central Bank of Nigeria, -CBN’s data on sectoral utilization for transactions valid for forex.
The industrial sector adjudged for the biggest share of the forex supplied for imports, followed by produced products, food products, petroleum products from the oil sector, and education services.
The external reserves of Africa’s biggest economy, Nigeria, fell from $40.52 billion at the end of 2021 to $38.92 billion on 9th August 2022, the CBN’s data revealed.
Nigeria greatly depends on importation for almost every good and this has led to increased pressure, on the naira exchange rate as importers need forex, especially the USD, to import goods into the country.
The forex used for fuel importation rose by 35.14 percent to $679.47 million in Q1 2022 compared to 2021’s, according to CBN. This sector also greatly relies on importation as refineries in the country have been closed down since 2020 for rehabilitation.
