Naira depreciates to N1,620/$ at parallel market

Naira, on Monday, depreciated to N1,620/$ at the parallel section of the foreign exchange market.

The figure represents N20 or 1.25 percent depreciation compared to the N1,600 it traded on March 1, 2024.

Speaking to TheCable, currency traders in Lagos, also known as bureau de change (BDC) operators, quoted the buying rate of the greenback at N1,580 and the selling price at N1,620 — leaving a profit margin of N40.

At the official window, the naira gained 0.9 percent to trade at N1,534.19/$ on Monday — from N1,548.25 per dollar on March 1.

According to data from FMDQ Securities, a platform that oversees foreign exchange trading in Nigeria, the local currency hit an intra-day trading high of N1,600.75 and a low of N1,425.35.

Meanwhile, Olayemi Cardoso, governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), on February 28, 2024, said the naira is undervalued largely due to distortions by perpetrators in the foreign exchange market.

“As and when we come up with these distortions, we will take them off and throw them away and where there are distortions that come about as a result of bad behaviour, we will ensure that those who do it will face the music as a deterrent to ensure that others in future do not take that route,” Cardoso said.

He said the perpetrators confuse the FX market.