An analysis of market data from the first half of 2026 has revealed a mixed performance for Nigeria’s euro bonds.
According to official data from a recent report by the Debt Management Office (DMO) on “Nigeria’s Daily Eurobonds Closing Prices and Yields from January 02 to June 24, 2026”, the market experienced a clear divergence between short-term and long-term maturities.
While short-to-medium-term Eurobond yields faced upward pressure, long-dated notes saw significant price appreciation and a corresponding decline in yields.
According to the data, the first six months of 2026 demonstrated notable growth in market appetite for Nigeria’s long-term instruments. Between January 2 and June 24, 2026, yields on long-dated maturities consistently compressed. For instance, the yield on the 9.248% US750M JAN 2049 Eurobond dropped from 8.341% at the start of January to 8.027% by June 24.
Similarly, the 8.25% $1.25bn SEP 2051 Eurobond saw its yield moderate from 8.37% to 8.089%.
This downward trajectory in yields indicates that international investors are demanding less of a premium to hold Nigerian debt over the next two to three decades.
This dynamic was heavily mirrored in the bond prices; the 2049 Eurobond price rose from 109.216 to 112.624, while the 2051 note edged up from 98.717 to 101.702 over the same period.
Conversely, shorter-term papers experienced a mild sell-off, driving yields upward. The 7.143% $1.25bn FEB 2030 Eurobond, for example, saw its yield climb from 6.04% to 6.557% as investors reacted to immediate global macroeconomic shifts, inflationary pressures, and local liquidity adjustments.
The report further shows that market volatility peaked late in the first quarter, with every single Nigerian Eurobond tracking its highest yield of the six-month period around the exact same window.
The yields on March 30, 2026 specifically surged across the board.
During this mid-year peak, the 9.129% US1.10B JAN 2046 Eurobond hit a period high of 8.709%, while the 7.696% US1.25BN FEB 2038 Eurobond topped out at 8.231%. For the ultra-long-term notes, the 9.248% JAN 2049 and 8.25% SEP 2051 Eurobonds recorded their absolute highest rates of the year just a few days prior, on March 27, hitting 8.644% and 8.681% respectively.
Financial analysts attribute this brief late-March spike to global interest rate uncertainties and portfolio realignments before subsequent domestic interventions cooled the market.
The overall decompression of long-term yields also provided much-needed breathing room for the Nigerian economy. Through reduced long-term borrowing costs, external debt issuance will be significantly cheaper for the federal government allowing the fiscal side to redirect capital away from aggressive debt servicing and toward critical infrastructure, healthcare, and educational development.