FX turnover declines 44.9% to $2bn

The weekly turnover in the foreign exchange market, as reported by FMDQ Securities Exchange, declined by 44.90% to $2,054.89m during the week ending 14 August 2026. This marks a significant drop from the $3,729.44m recorded in the previous week. The decrease, representing a loss of $1,674.55m, occurred across both FX Spot and Derivatives markets.

The contraction was mainly attributed to a substantial reduction in FX Spot transactions, which accounted for the primary means of immediate foreign currency settlement. Spot trading turnover fell by 46.98% from $3,704.44m to $1,964.00m, causing the daily average for Spot transactions to decrease from $740.89m to $443.22m. This reduction shifted Spot's share of total market activity from 99.33% to 95.58%.

Meanwhile, the FX Derivatives market saw a surge in activity, growing by 263.56% to reach $90.89m, up from $25.00m in the preceding week. This growth was primarily driven by the FX Forwards market, which also expanded by 263.56% to $65.89m, increasing its daily average to $18.18m and market share to 4.42%. Despite the robust participation in forward contracts, the sharp drop in Spot trading proved insufficient to counterbalance the overall decline in market activity, resulting in a net reduction in financial market turnover.