Market News

The naira strengthened further against the dollar on the official market on Thursday, closing at N1,570/$1 compared to N1,608.73/$1 on Wednesday, data from FMDQ shows.

However, the local currency weakened against the greenback on the parallel market yesterday, easing to N1,605/$1 compared to N1,600 per dollar on Wednesday.

Analysts said that the naira’s recovery on the official market in the last two days after a five-day losing streak caused by a sharp rise in demand for forex from businesses and people traveling for summer holidays, is an indication that recent Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) interventions in the forex market are yielding result.

Last Friday, the CBN announced that it sold foreign currencies worth $148 million in the Nigerian foreign exchange market (NFEM) to 29 authorised dealers on July 22 and 23.

The apex bank also said it bought $2 million from one authorised dealer bank at the rate of N1,505.00/$. On July 12, the CBN said it sold foreign currencies worth $122.67 million to 46 authorised dealers in two days to ensure stability and reduce FX market volatility.

Between July 17 and July 18, the CBN said foreign currencies worth $106.5 million were sold to 29 authorised dealer banks. The regulator said it would continue to support various segments of the official market with liquidity in the coming weeks.