Black Market’s Dollar Rate Now N288 Higher Than CBN-backed Official Rate

The exchange rate between the naira and the dollar sold at an average of N750/$1 on Wednesday, 25 January 2023, in the black market.

In the black market, operated by the Bureau De Change operators, the naira appreciated by 0.40 per cent, in contrast to the N753/$1 the dollar was priced on Tuesday, 24 January 2023.

The Nigerian currency bounced back from Tuesday’s depreciation after the dollar rate increased to N753, as the Bureau De Cange operators demanded more than the N745 it sold the United States currency on Monday, according to Nairametrics. 

However, despite the drop, Bureau De Change operators are still overwhelmed by demand, reason the dollar rate has remained at a premium in the black market. 

Similarly, demands for foreign exchange (forex) in the official market have been high, however, supply has been fluctuating in the window backed by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).

On Tuesday, supply fell by -15.61 per cent after the value of forex transacted depreciated to $112.04 million at the end of the trading session. 

The value of forex transacted fell by -15.61 per cent when compared to the $132.77 million worth of forex that traders exchanged during the previous day. 

Prime Business Africa gathered that the drop in the value of forex traded was on the back of the exchange rate between the naira and dollar falling by -0.08 per cent.

In the Investors and Exporters window of the official market, the dollar rate closed at N462 per the American greenback, below the N461.63/$1 that the United States currency was sold on Monday. 

Before the dollar rate settled at N462, data obtained from the exchange rate tracker, FMDQ Exchange showed the forex traded as high as N463, and as low as N440. 

This further increases the gap between the black market and the official market to 61.6 per cent or N288, from the 61.3 per cent reported by Prime Business Africa on Tuesday.