FOREX: CBN maintains market liquidity with $195m

Mathew Dadiya, Abuja

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), on Monday continued to maintain liquidity in the Foreign Exchange (FOREX) market by injecting $195 million in the the Nigerian inter-bank foreign exchange market.

Figures released by the Bank show that it offered a total sum of $100million to the wholesale segment, while the Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) segment received the sum of $50 million. The invisibles segment, comprising tuition fees, medical payments and Basic Travel Allowance (BTA), among others, received $45 million.

Mr. Isaac Okorafor, the Acting Director, Corporate Communications Department of the CBN, confirming the development, said that the apex Bank would continue to increase liquidity, aimed at meeting genuine demand in the market to enhance forex stability.

It will be recalled that the Apex Bank last week, Friday, October 13, 2017, intervened in the retail segment of the inter-bank market with the sum of $306.3 million.

Meanwhile, the naira, on Monday, exchanged at an average of N364/$1 in the Bureau de Change segment (BDCs) across major trading points in Lagos, Abuja, Port-Harcourt and Kano.

The apex bank had on Friday, injected $306.3m that boosted the market during the weekend.