Nigeria’s foreign exchange (FX) market turnover surged by 56.4% to $8.6 billion, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has revealed.

The increase, up from around $5.5 billion last year, reflects stronger liquidity and investor confidence following recent FX market reforms. The CBN said measures such as clearing FX backlogs, adopting market-reflective rates, and improving transparency have boosted activity.

Nigeria’s external reserves also rose to $43.4 billion as of October 10 the highest in five years enough to cover about 11 months of imports. The Federal Government and CBN are targeting a $20 billion current account surplus through higher export earnings and capital inflows.

Analysts say the uptick signals renewed market confidence but warn that sustaining it will require consistent fiscal and monetary discipline, along with reduced dependence on short-term capital flows.