Naira halts rally at parallel market, extends gains at official window

The naira reversed the appreciation streak at the parallel section of the foreign exchange (FX) market on Wednesday.

The naira maintained an upward trend from May 17 to May 20 after appreciating from N1,550/$ to N1,490 per dollar.

However, the local currency depreciated by 1.66 percent to N1,505 against the dollar on Wednesday.

The bureau de change (BDC) operators, popularly known as street traders, put the buying price of the dollar at N1,480 and the selling price at N1,505 — leaving a profit margin of N25.

At the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEM), known as the official window, the naira recovered marginally to N1,462.59/$.

The rate represents an appreciation of 0.21 percent from the N1,465.68/$ recorded on May 21.

Naira appreciated as high as N1,531/$ during intra-day trading and as low as N1,401/$, according to data from the FMDQ Securities Exchange, a platform that oversees FX trading in Nigeria.

On May 21, the monetary policy committee (MPC) of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) said the volatility in the FX market is caused by seasonal demand for forex.

Also, speaking during the press briefing of the committee’s 295th meeting, Olayemi Cardoso, CBN governor, said international money transfer operators (IMTOs) have identified charges and fluctuating FX rates as challenges faced in the country.