The Naira at the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEM) window, depreciated by 4.28 per cent to close at N1,479.47 against the dollar on Thursday from N1418.78 reported Wednesday.
The local currency depreciated on Thursday amid days of appreciation when the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Olayemi Cardoso announced the clearing of the backlog.
On Wednesday, the foreign exchange turnover dropped by 56.17 per cent to $203 million as the naira gained against the dollar marginally at the official market.
Conversely, the exchange rate deteriorated in the black market during the same period.
This is despite a slew of policies from the CBN aimed at improving forex supply.
Meanwhile, the domestic currency depreciated 1.12 per cent to close at N1418 to a dollar at the close of business, based on data from NAFEM where forex is officially traded.
This represents an N14.03 loss or a 1.12% decrease in the local currency compared to the N1433.89 it closed at on the previous day.
The intraday high recorded was N1,510/$1, while the intraday low was N896.28/$1, representing a wide spread of N613.72/$1.
This is the 7th straight day that the exchange rate intra-day high has remained at above N1,500/$1.
According to data obtained from the official NAFEM window, forex turnover at the close of the trading was $203.93 million, representing a 56.17 per cent decrease compared to the previous day.
However, the naira depreciated marginally at the parallel forex market where forex is sold unofficially, the exchange rate quoted at N1465/$1, representing a 1.02% decrease over what it closed the previous day, while peer-to-peer traders quoted around N1482.50/$1.
Cardoso stated that recent reforms of the apex bank are beginning to yield positive results concerning liquidity in the foreign exchange market.
Cardoso stated this during an appearance before the House of Representatives today saying that there has been an increase in dollar liquidity within the country’s currency market.
He stated, “As of yesterday, the volume of transactions in our market was over $800 million. This is the first time in many years it has achieved this level.
“I want to emphasize that we are now at a turning point and bold reforms are underway across different segments of the economy. I’m confident that positive outcomes are already emerging and will become more apparent shortly.”
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