Naira gains at official FX, drop at parallel market
.As I&E FX window trades $299.50m
The Naira, on Thursday, rebounded to record an appreciable gain at the close of trading at the official foreign exchange market, even though it was a different case at the parallel segment, as the local currency
dropped against all the three major foreign currencies, Daily Times check has revealed.
After traded for 306 to the dollar on Tuesday and Wednesday, respectively, at the official FX market, the Nigerian currency, ended yesterday trading activities stronger at 305.95, which represented 0.02 per cent growth.
But recorded a declined exchange rate of 364 per dollar against 363 that was sustained for months and weakened at 474 to the pound sterling compared to 470 and or 472 that has selling in the recent time.
The Naira, surprisingly, closed at 425 per Euro against 422 traded a day earlier and 420 sold exactly a week ago, data obtained has showed.
However, the Investor & Exporter FX window, on Thursday, also showed more strength against the Greenback, with the closing rate of 359.56 against 360.27 on Wednesday, after opened on a profitable rate of 359.70 compared to 360.75 recorded the previous day.
The I&E FX window, also, declared significant increase of total daily turnover of $299.50 million against $86.99m transacted on Wednesday.
Although, forex traders, believed that the naira is expected to be stable in the week ahead, with the continuous interventions through the injection of dollars into the market by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
It would be recalled that the Federal Government through the apex on Wednesday, raised N119.9bn at a Treasury bill auction, after allocating almost 90 per cent of the debt to the longer maturities.
The central bank sold N107.93bn of one-year debt at a rate of 15.60 per cent, N43.26bn more than it had initially
offered to sell in that maturity.
Investors bid as high as 18.23 per cent for the one-year paper. However, the government has been offering debt at lower yields to track declining inflation, which fell for the ninth month in October to 15.91 percent.
The bank then sold 6 billion naira each in three- and six- months maturities at 13.0 percent and 15.25 percent respectively.
Total subscription stood at 152.89 billion naira. On Wednesday, the Debt Management Office said it planned to sell N100bn in five- and 10-year bonds on Nov. 22.
Motolani Oseni
