Naira: Black Market Spot Rate below N1500 per US Dollar
The naira has stabilised around N1500 per US dollar in the black market, a channel check conducted by MarketForces Africa confirmed. According to analysts, exchange rate stability in the forex market has been supported by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) intervention.
However, the authority has halted US dollar sales to authorised dealer local banks, a move that started last week and has persisted this week. The forex market has sufficient liquidity for now and may be able to stand alone for a while without the CBN, analysts said.
Reduced dollar interest rates, making naira assets more attractive, and an undiclosed amount of US dollar swap repayments by the CBN, alleviating demand-side pressure, Erad Partner Limited said in an update.
In the parallel market, Bureau de Change (BDC) operators sold the US dollar at ₦1,490 in the absence of demand pressures. The operators have the CBN permission to buy $25000 at the official rate from Nigerian banks.
This has narrowed down the FX gap, reducing speculative activities in the Nigerian forex market significantly. But exchange rate stability has come at huge costs with successive declines in external reserves. Nigeria’s foreign reserves fell from a 3-year high to about $39 billion.
Nigerian Exchange Falls by N73bn as Investors Dump VFD, OANDO
