Fakoyejo Olalekan
Traders in the Investors’ and Exporters’ window of the official market transacted $71.68 million in foreign exchange on Friday, 28 April, as the Naira to Dollar exchange rate increased by 0.21 per cent.
At the end of trading, data released by the FMDQ Exchange showed the value of foreign exchange transacted was up by 8.55 per cent.
Join our WhatsApp ChannelThe $71.68 million foreign exchange transacted is $5.65 million more than the $66.03 million traded in the Investors’ and Exporters’ window on Thursday, 27 April.
This was on the back of the Dollar halting the upward movement of the Naira which lasted for three days straight, between Tuesday to Thursday.
Recall that the official market didn’t open on Monday due to the public holiday to celebrate the Eid el-Fitr festival held on Friday, 21 April, and Monday, 24 April.
Prime Business Africa gathered that the Dollar rate climbed slightly by ₦1 or 0.21 per cent, indicating the value of the Naira plummeted in the official market.
The data disclosed that the foreign exchange between the Naira and the Dollar closed at ₦463 on Friday, surpassing the ₦462/$1 reported at the end of the trading session on Thursday.
Dollar rate in Nigeria has continued to rise in Nigeria despite the intervention of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) in the foreign exchange market.
Although the CBN hasn’t revealed any intervention this year, in 2022, the central bank disbursed $15.3 billion into the economy to increase supply against demand.
Between January to October last year, $15.3 billion was pumped into the official market through CBN’s authorised forex dealers.
This move was to support the Naira, limiting its devaluation to the Dollar in the official market. However, despite the disbursement, the exchange rate as of Friday sits well above the ₦422.67 kobo the Dollar rate opened 2022 with.
Amid the CBN’s intervention effort, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has advised Nigeria’s financial regulator to reduce its forex interventions.
