Naira Records Marginal Profit, Ends At N362/Dollar

The naira on Wednesday closed at 362 per United States dollar at the parallel market, two days after the Central Bank of Nigeria pumped $210m into the foreign exchange market.

The local unit closed at 363/dollar on Tuesday.

The naira has been trading between 360 and 363 in recent weeks as the CBN continues to involve themselves  in the market once or twice on weekly basis.

The regulator had injected over $500m into the forex market between penultimate Friday and last Monday.

Analysts have said that the naira is likely to remain stable against the greenback   this week as demand for the US currency weakens whenever the unit trades below 360 per dollar.

Foreign exchange traders said most forex users were not willing to source dollars weaker than N360 at the Investors & Exporters FX window and that offshore investors had been buying local debt in search of yields, boosting liquidity on the currency market, Reuters reported.

On the official market, the naira was quoted at 305.70, supported by the CBN’s regular intervention.

Meanwhile, figures obtained from the CBN indicated that out of the last intervention, it offered $100m to authorised dealers in the wholesale segment of the market, while the Small and Medium Enterprises segment received the sum of $55m.

Customers requiring foreign exchange for invisibles such as tuition fees, medical payments and Basic Travel Allowance, among others, were also allocated the sum of $55m.

The bank’s Acting Director, Corporate Communications, Mr. Isaac Okorafor, confirmed the figures, adding that those who made bids in the wholesale window would receive value for the bids on Tuesday.

Okorafor reassured the public that the bank would continue to intervene in the interbank foreign exchange market in line with its quest to sustain liquidity in the market and maintain stability.