The dollar appreciated against the naira on Tuesday in the Investors’ and Exporters’ window of the official market, closing at N775.34/$1, the foreign exchange aggregator, FMDQ Exchange revealed.
It was learnt that the naira depreciated by 0.41 per cent, driving the cost of the dollar up by N3.22 kobo from the N772.12/$1 rate both currencies closed at on Monday.
The exchange rate fell between N799.90/$1 and N701/$1, which are the highest and lowest rates of the day according to the data released by the FMDQ Exchange.
Also, the report further showed that the foreign exchange traders transacted $71.32 million worth of forex, compared to the previous day’s $40.21 million.
Meanwhile, in the black market, the naira to dollar average exchange rate was N920.1/$1, according to Naira Rates, a parallel market aggregator, which showed the rate was N903.5/$1.
The average rate of the British currency, the pound, was N1177.6/£1 in the black market. The rate increased from N1152.9/£1 rate reported during the preceding day.
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Also, the euro was sold at an average rate of N1009.5/€1 in the parallel market, compared to the N988.3/€1 average rate it was offered on Monday in the Bureau De Change window.
In mid-August, the dollar was quoted as low as N955/$1, stoking fears among investors that the exchange rate might plummet to N1000/$1.
The Naira has been falling steadily since FG/CBN announced the Naira float. It lost nearly half its value against the US dollar within 10 weeks of its introduction.
The country’s apex bank reaffirmed its commitment to achieving price stability and exchange rate stability, but given the structural and budgetary difficulties the economy is experiencing, economists have expressed skepticism about the CBN’s capacity on its limited FX ammunition.
To stabilize the naira and curb inflation, the CBN has introduced several measures, including raising the banks’ cash reserve ratio (CRR), opening market operations (OMO), and changing the exchange rate regime.
While the market rallied on the news, it appeared to be short-lived support as the local currency subsequently fell against the dollar in the following segments.