Naira briefly trades N632/$ at I&E window as demand pressure worsens

The naira, on Friday, sold for as high as N632 per dollar at the investors and exporters (I&E) window amid increased demand.

The figure is the highest intraday rate ever recorded since the introduction of the window in April 2017.

The I&E foreign exchange (FX) window is the country’s official exchange rate window. It is the market trading segment for investors, exporters and end-users that allows for FX trades to be made at exchange rates determined based on prevailing market circumstances.

Data from FMDQ OTC Securities Exchange, a platform where FX is officially traded, showed that the opening sale price for Friday was N463.75/$, but it declined by 0.18 percent to close at N464.51/$.

The highest spot rate for the day was N632/$ while the lowest was N410/$.

At the end of the trading day, the market recorded a total of $144.72 million transactions.

Meanwhile, checks by TheCable showed that the exchange rate between the naira and the US dollar depreciated to N775/$ at the parallel market on Friday.

A currency trader in Victoria Island, Lagos, who spoke to TheCable, attributed the depreciation of the local currency to a high level of demand for the greenback compared to supply.

Currently, Nigeria operates two FX markets: one is the official rate, while the other is the parallel/street market rate.

Although the parallel segment is more accessible to traders and businesses who need FX, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has consistently maintained that it represents less than one percent of forex transactions and should never be used to determine the exchange rate.

Recently, Kashim Shettima, Nigeria’s new vice president, said removing petrol subsidy and ending the multiple exchange rate system are the top two issues which the administration of Bola Tinubu would have to face.