The Nigerian naira rose against the dominance of the US dollar at the foreign exchange market for investors and exporters. The local currency recovered losses experienced as a result of increased forex demand versus a moderate supply level in the market.
According to the FMDQ Exchange fx quotation, the US dollar was sold to importers at N768.16 in the Central Bank of Nigeria’s organised FX market. This equates to a 3.22% daily gain in the foreign currency market when compared to the N793.70 it traded for the US dollar on Wednesday.
According to traders, the open indicative rate ended at N787.13 per dollar on Thursday. The highest spot exchange rate reported throughout the day’s trade before it settled was N844 to the US dollar.
The naira traded for as little as N700 to the dollar during the day’s trading, according to Nigeria’s FX market report. On Thursday, 56.22 million dollars were exchanged in the investors and exporters window.
The Naira, on the other hand, resumed its downward trajectory in the parallel market, falling 1.18% to N860 from N850 versus the US dollar. According to data on the CBN website, gross external reserves fell further despite a persistent lack of FX inflows.
Nigeria has paid its 10-year Eurobond obligations, which were due to maturity on July 12, 2022. As the naira continues to deteriorate, commentators have charged the central bank with resolving the FX backlog due to foreign investors in order to entice US dollar inflows into the economy.
The apex bank has been selling foreign currency in a mild market intervention to protect the Naira every week since June 22, 2023, after a large devaluation to keep investors and exporters FX market wet.
Analysts at Cordros Capital Limited said in an update that as of mid-July, the apex bank has boosted the official window with a total sum of $96 million.
