Naira Pulls Back in Parallel Foreign Exchange Market
The naira has plunged back in the foreign exchange market, trading at N1590 per US dollar on Wednesday. According to channel check by MarketForces Africa, the local currency has continued to giving up gain for the second trading session this week as FX shortage in the official window reflects on price quoted for US dollar in the black market.
The US dollar value of the Nigerian naira had appreciated to N1550, reducing gap between official and parallel market to N50. The official window was N1500 at the time, but FX illiquidity has caused a repriced in naira rates at both forex markets.
On Tuesday, The Naira lost N5.45 and N15.00 to close at N1,506.40 and N1,575.00 in the official and parallel markets, respectively.
Consequently, the spread between the two markets widened to 4.55% from 3.93%. On Monday, Central Bank of Nigerian (CBN) intervened in the FX market, selling $16.45 million within the range of N1,497.00 to N1,500.00
Oil prices climbed to a two-week high as concerns over Russian and Iranian supply disruptions due to sanctions, along with escalating Middle East tensions, outweighed fears that trade tariffs could fuel inflation and slow global growth.
Brent crude gained $1.13 (1.5%) to close at $77.00 per barrel, while U.S. WTI crude rose $1.00 (1.4%) to $73.32. Meanwhile, gold prices dipped as investors took profits following a record high, though sentiment remained bullish amid fears of a global trade war triggered by U.S. President Donald Trump’s new tariffs.
Spot gold edged down 0.1% to $2,904.87 per ounce, after touching an intraday peak of $2,942.70. #Naira Pulls Back in Parallel Foreign Exchange Market Telecom Hike: LCCI Seeks Continuous Stakeholders’ Engagement
