Naira Loses Shine, CBN Calls Meeting as Exchange Rates Worsen

The Nigerian naira lost shine in the foreign currency markets as exchange rates worsened beyond analysts’ anticipation. According to currency movement data from FMDQ, the naira depreciated against the US dollar by 2.86% to close at ₦1,520.40 per dollar in the official market.

The amount of US dollars available at the Nigerian autonomous foreign exchange market was insufficient to meet the demand for foreign currency required by eligible market participants to fulfill their import payment obligations.

Foreign portfolio investors are still pulling money out of the market because fixed income securities are yielding less than inflation, and global central bankers are keeping interest rates high, draining FX inflows.

The apex bank’s FX injection into local deposit money banks and the informal market has reduced strongly, causing the naira to lose significant value after it toppled other currencies to become the world’s best performer in April.

In the parallel market, the naira closed at ₦1,515 against the US dollar as the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) slowed down foreign currency or forex selling to bureaux de change operators (BDCs) in the informal currency trading market. 

The members of the monetary policy committee have received notice from the apex bank that their meeting will take place in Abuja on May 20 and 21, 2024. The authority held its first meeting under Yemi Cardoso in February and another meeting was scheduled for March.

According to official data obtained from the CBN webiste, the country’s external reserves increased even more, rising to $32.538 billion, despite fluctuations in the price of crude oil globally and a record low volume of production.

Oil prices declined as Brent crude dipped by 0.78% to $82.71 per barrel, while West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude also fell by 0.83% to $78.47 per barrel on Tuesday. #Naira Loses Shine, CBN Calls Meeting as Exchange Rates Worsen Reforms: Fitch Revises Nigeria’s Outlook to Positive
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