Naira upholds 363/$1 for eight days at parallel market

…as NAFEX window records $252.56m

The Naira, on Thursday, closed at 363 per US Dollar, the same rate it has been trading for over one week at the parallel market segment of the foreign exchange.

This is even as the Importer & Exporters FX window as at close of yesterday trading activities declared a total daily turnover of $252.56 million, higher than $240.54 million recorded on Wednesday.

The local currency, at the parallel market, had closed at 363 to the dollar last Thursday and ended the week with the same rate before replicated the feat on the first trading day of this week and has since remained unchanged at the same price.

Also, the Naira had recorded similar success against the two other major foreign currencies, the Pound Sterling and Euro.

As at close of yesterday trading, the Naira, was sold at 425 per Euro the same rate it has been trading in the last one week, except on Tuesday when it closed at an appreciable rate of 422 and at 475 to the pound except on Monday when it closed at a declined figure of 478 but rebounded the following day before steadied at 475 during the period under review.

In the other hand, the naira, at the official forex market, has been on the steady growth before dropping on Wednesday and rebounded on Thursday to close at 305.55 compared to 305.65 traded a week ago.

Consequently, the Nigeria Autonomous Foreign Exchange (NAFEX) window, opened at 360.13 better than 360.20 recorded on Wednesday but lower than 359.79 opened on Tuesday and Monday rate of 359.85 per dollar. However, closed at 360.71 the same closing figure recorded a day before, which was weaker than 360.31 and 360.50 sold on Monday and Tuesday, respectively.

Although, the NAFEX widow as at close of yesterday trading activities declared an increase of $12.04 million, closing with the daily turnover of $252.56 million compared to $240.54 million recorded on Wednesday, $86.69 million on Tuesday and $207.20 million declared on Monday.

Meanwhile, as part of its continued effort in stabilizing and ensuring liquidity in the official foreign exchange market, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has sold not less than $3.47 billion in the third quarter of 2017.

In the last three months, between July and September, the apex bank sold $727.5 million to foreign exchange dealers in July and its grew to $1.5 billion in August, representing an increase of 106 per cent, while compared to July sales.

In the same month, the total sum of $561 million was allocated to the clearance of the backlog of matured foreign exchange obligations for raw materials and machineries for manufacturing companies, agricultural chemicals, and airlines – was for Retail Secondary Market Intervention Sales (SMIS).

But in the following month, August, the sum of $500 million went to wholesale foreign exchange dealers, while $235 million to Small and Medium Enterprise (SMEs) and $200 million to invisible demands.

In the just concluded month, September, the central bank lifted the local currency with a total injection of $1.24 billion, as $485 million went to the Retail Secondary Market and $300 million to SMEs.  Others are $255 million and $200 million, invisibles, and wholesale segments, respectively.