Naira appreciates to N737/$ at parallel market

The Naira yesterday appreciated to N737 per dollar at the parallel section of the foreign exchange (FX) market, popularly called the black market.

The figure indicates a N9 or 1.2 per cent gain compared to the N746 it traded three weeks ago

The currency had maintained stability against the U.S dollar in the past couple of weeks at N745/$- N746/$ before its recent appreciation.

Street traders attributed the appreciation of the local currency to low demand for dollars by customers.

Speaking in Victoria Island, Lagos, Bureaux De Change operators (BDCs) said they purchased the greenback at N730/$, sold at N737/$ and made a gain of N7.

READ ALSO: Naira remains stable at N463/$ at official market

Also, the naira gained 0.08 percent to close at N462.88/$ at the investors and exporters (I&E) forex window on Tuesday, according to data published by FMDQ, a platform where FX is officially traded.

The data also showed that forex worth $80.90 million were transacted among market dealers.

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has continued to intervene in the official forex market from the external reserve to maintain the stability of the naira.

Recently, the World Bank, in its outlook for 2023, said the economic slowdown in developing countries such as Nigeria would persist for years due to inflation, currency depreciation, rising debt service costs, and the collapse of international reserves.

In February, Nigeria’s inflation rate surged to 21.91 percent, up from 21.82 percent in the previous month.