Foreign reserves fall to $31.57 billion

Nigeria’s foreign reserves fell to $31.57 billion by February 25, down 8.33 percent from $34.44 billion a month earlier, latest data from the Central Bank of Nigeria showed on Friday.

The CBN has been drawing down on reserves to support the ailing naira which was hit by falling global oil price and escalating tensions ahead of next month’s general elections.

The prices of oil, which account for account for more than 90 percent of Nigeria’s government revenue, have fallen by more than 50 per cent since last year. The decline has forced the country’s finance ministry to fix a benchmark of $65 per barrel in the 2015 budget proposal, a benchmark which the National Assembly is keen to $52 per barrel.