Naira records slight appreciation at parallel market, falls in official window

The naira, on Wednesday, appreciated to N1,500 per dollar at the parallel section of the foreign exchange (FX) market.

The current FX rate signifies an increase of 0.66 percent from the N1,510 reported on June 3.

Currency traders in Lagos, also known as bureau de change, quoted the buying rate at N1,460 and the selling price at N1,500.

At the official window, the local currency depreciated by 0.78 percent against the dollar from N1,476.95 on June 3 to close at N1,488.60 on Wednesday. 

During trading hours, the exchange rate recorded a high of N1,520 and a low of N1,363.85, according to market data from FMDQ Exchange, a platform that oversees the official FX trading in Nigeria.

The daily foreign exchange market turnover stood at $205.43 million.

On June 4, Fitch Ratings, a global rating agency, projected the naira would  end the year at N1,450 to a dollar.

During a post-sovereign rating webinar on Tuesday focused on Nigeria and Egypt, Gaimin Nonyane, director of Middle-East and Africa sovereigns at Fitch Ratings, said the naira is “still finding its feet”. 

“We project that naira will average about N1,200/dollar this year and end the year around N1450/dollar. And in terms of next year, we see a gradual depreciation but it also depends largely on the foreign exchange reforms momentum,” she said.

In the short term, Fitch Ratings also projected a recovery in the oil sector to support FX demands.