The Naira Trades at 1,185/$, Liquidity Concerns Still Present

According to some Bureau de Change Operators, the naira traded at 1,185/$ on Wednesday at the parallel market, as liquidity challenges persisted.

BDC operators who spoke to NewsNow noted that this slight improvement was from the previous day’s rate of 1,190/$, indicating that the local currency has yet to reach its true value.

Figures from AbokiFX showed that on Wednesday, the naira was bought and sold at rates of 1,170/$ and 1,175/$, 1,510/£ and 1,550/£, and €1,280 and €1,300 respectively.

Jubril Mutiu, a BDC operator, stated, “We sold the naira at 1,185/$ today, it was 1,190/$ yesterday; we are buying at 1,175/$ today.”

Ismail Ahmed, another BDC operator, mentioned, “There is still a scarcity challenge. We are buying and selling at rates of 1,180/$ and 1,200/$. It was cheaper last weekend, but it has gone up due to scarcity.”

The naira reached a high of 1,310/$ last week before closing at 1,150/$ at the parallel market on Friday.

The Association of Bureau de Change Operators of Nigeria highlighted the recent gains and proposed strategies to sustain them. President of ABCON, Dr Aminu Gwadabe, said, “While these positive impacts might be short-term, there is a need to implement the democratization and centralization of the foreign exchange market and leverage on the BDCs’ moderating and correcting roles.”

However, in the Investor & Exporter forex window, the naira began trading at 798.75/$ and reached a high of 1,101/$ before closing at 786.02/$ on Wednesday.

On Tuesday, it closed at 905.75/$ on the official trading platform, according to data from the FMDQ.

The I&E window recorded a total turnover of 105.98m at the end of Wednesday’s trading.

Analysts at Cordros Research stated, “The incentives for holding the naira continue to be limited by the day, coupled with panic-buying due to expectations of further currency pressures amidst limited FX supplies. Consequently, we expect the exchange rate pressures to persist in the short term unless significant FX inflows or convincing actions by policymakers emerge.”