Victor EzejaThe Nigerian naira recorded a significant appreciation against dollar at the official and parallel or black segments of the foreign exchange markets on Friday, ending the week on a positive note.
Data released by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) showed that the Nigerian Foreign Exchange Market (NFEM) rate appreciated to N1,580.44 per dollar on Friday, 23 May from N1,584.95 on Thursday.
Join our WhatsApp ChannelThis reflects a N4.51 gain for the naira against the dollar on a day-to-day basis. On a week-on-week basis, the naira gained N18.28 against the dollar when compared to N1,598.72 per dollar on Friday, 16 May.
Similarly, the naira strengthened to N1,615 per dollar at the black market on Friday from N1,625 recorded on Thursday, indicating a N10 gain.
Prime Business Africa reports that the Naira had both gains and losses against the dollar during the week under review.
READ ALSO: Naira Continues Appreciation At Official Market
The naira began the week with a marginal appreciation at the official market. It further strengthened on Tuesday to 1,590.45/$ and N1,584.49/$ on Wednesday. After a slight drop to N1,584.95 on Thursday, the local currency rose to N1,580.44 on Friday.
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has been rolling out measures to boost liquidity in the FX market and also stabilise the naira.
READ ALSO: ‘CBN’s Interest Rate Remains High, Choking Businesses’
During his address at the end of the 300th Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meeting on Tuesday, the CBN Governor, Dr Olayemi Cardoso, said the naira is currently a stable, reliable, and more competitive payment system for trade across the West African region.
He said if the current trend of the currency is sustained, it would encourage more exports.
Given the relative stability in the foreign exchange market, the MPC, according to Cardoso, urged the CBN “to sustain the implementation of the ongoing reforms to further boost the economy.”
Victor Ezeja is a passionate journalist with seven years of experience writing on economy, politics and energy. He holds a Master's degree in Mass Communication.
