Naira slumps to N1,450/1$ at parallel market, despite CBN intervention

The naira has continued to plunge against the U.S dollar, falling to N1,450 to $1 on Thursday at the parallel market.

This represents a decrease of 8.28% or N120 compared to the rate of N1,330 reported earlier in the morning, according to data from currency traders.

Bureau De Change (BDC) operators listed the purchase rate at N1,350 and the approximate selling rate at N1,450, indicating a profit margin of N100.

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has intensified dollar supplies through BDCs to alleviate pressure on the foreign exchange market and mitigate imported inflation.

Also read: CBN sells dollars to BDCs at N1,021 

Recently, the CBN reduced the foreign exchange rate for dollar distributions to BDCs, offering $10,000 at N1,021 per dollar, approximately 21% below the official rate reported by FMDQ. This move aimed to enhance liquidity in the unofficial market.

Furthermore, the CBN cleared over $136 million in airlines’ outstanding obligations, which has boosted confidence in the forex market.

These initiatives by the CBN have helped alleviate forex scarcity and contributed to the naira’s recovery from an early March rate of N1,617 per dollar to N1,072 per dollar on April 17th.

In official markets, the naira depreciated slightly to N1,309.88 against the dollar by Thursday’s trading, representing a 0.10% drop from the previous rate of N1,308.52 recorded on Wednesday.