Naira continues free fall, down to N1,175/$1 at parallel market

The Nigerian currency, the naira continued its free fall on Thursday as it weakened in the parallel market closing at N1,175 per dollar.

It would be recalled that the naira had exchanged for N1,100 on Wednesday before falling further on Thursday to N1,175, showing a depreciation rate of 6.8 percent.

Also at the parallel market, the British pound sterling exchanged for N1,330 up from N1,300 on Wednesday. The Euro also went up to N1,140 from N1,110 on Wednesday.

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Operators at the Black market cited low inflows and lack of access to the US currency as reasons for the rise.

However, at the Nigerian Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEM), the naira strengthened to N782.68 per dollar

According to data from FMDQ, the exchange rate for NAFEM fell to N782.68 per dollar from N790.68 per dollar on Wednesday, indicating N8 appreciation for the naira.

The naira has continued to weaken against the dollar across all market segment since the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) announced the lifting of the ban on 43 items previously restricted from accessing foreign exchange (forex) from the investor’s and exporters’ (I&E) window, which has now been renamed NAFEM.

In NAFEM, the currency has lost N23.48 since the announcement when it stood at N759.2 per dollar till date, while at the Black market, the Nigerian currency lost N145 where it stood at N1,030 per dollar last week Thursday