Naira appreciates to N1,373/$ in parallel market

By Elizabeth Adegbesan The naira today appreciated to N1,373 per dollar from N1,380 in the parallel market on Thursday. But the naira was stable at N1,346 per dollar in the Nigerian Foreign Exchange Market (NFEM), data from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) showed. Consequently, the margin between the parallel and official markets narrowed to N27 per dollar from N36 per dollar on Thursday.

The value of interbank turnover in NFEM increased by 8.9 per cent to $58.9 billion from $54.05 billion on Thursday. Analysts expect the mixed performance of the naira in the following weeks. In their financial market review and outlook, analysts at Cowry Asset Management Limited said, “Going forward, we expect the naira to remain relatively mixed across the foreign exchange markets in the near term, supported by marginal improvements in external reserves and potential foreign exchange inflows.

“However, sustained pressure on foreign currency demand could limit further gains.”