Naira depreciates at parallel market, appreciates at official window

The naira depreciated further to N1,430 at the parallel section of the foreign exchange (FX) market on Monday.

The FX rate represents a 4.38 percent drop from N1,370 traded on May 1.

Speaking to TheCable in Lagos, currency traders, also known as bureau de change (BDC) operators, put the buying rate of the greenback at N1,400 and the selling price at N1,430 — leaving a profit margin of N30.

At the official window, the local currency appreciated by 3.30 percent to N1,354.21 on Monday — from N1,400.40 on May 3.

During the trading period, the dollar exchanged for as high as N1,441 and as low as N1,285 according to data from FMDQ Exchange, a platform that oversees FX trading in Nigeria.

Meanwhile, Richard Montgomery, the British high commissioner to Nigeria, on May 5, said the new exchange rates policy under the present government and the leadership of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) is attracting investors.

“You all know that the foreign exchange system in the past chased away investors because it is difficult to get your exchange done and you do not know whether you will be able to move money across borders,” Montgomery said.

The British envoy also said trade relations between Nigeria and the United Kingdom (UK) are about £7 billion.