The naira strengthened to 1,494.03/$ at the official window on Thursday according to data from FMDQ Securities Exchange Limited.
Similarly, it appreciated at the parallel market to 1,510.00/$, further reducing the spread between the markets to 15.5/$.
The gap between the official foreign exchange and the parallel market rates is closing, following the various policies of the Central Bank of Nigeria.
According to CardinalStone Research’s daily market report, the naira rate appreciated by 1.04 per cent to 1,494.03/$ on the official window, while the parallel market rate also appreciated by 1.66 per cent to 1,510.00/$.
The naira had maintained the upswing at the previous day’s trading. On the FMDQ, the naira rose by 0.05 per cent to 1,509.53/$, while the parallel market rate appreciated by 0.65 per cent to N1,535.00/$.
The recent directive of the CBN extending dollar sales to Bureau De Change Operators till May 30, 2025 has been fingered as a major contributor to the strengthening of the naira.
Earlier, the President of the Association of Bureau De Change Operators, Aminu Gwadebe, in a chat with The PUNCH, expressed optimism about the appreciation of the naira.
He said, “The pick-up of the interbank proceeds to Bureaux de Change as directed by CBN is helping to inject liquidity and reduce panic in the market.”
Meanwhile, the strengthening of the naira comes as the Monetary Policy Committee of the CBN decided to hold the benchmark rate at 27.50 per cent and other parameters.
The MPC retained the asymmetric corridor around the MPR at plus 500 minus 100 basis points, the cash reserve ratio of deposit money banks at 50 per cent merchant banks at 16 per cent, and the liquidity ratio at 30 per cent.
On the consideration for holding rates, the Governor of the CBN, Olayemi Cardoso, after the MPC meeting, said the foreign exchange market was stable.
“At this meeting, the Monetary Policy Committee noted with satisfaction recent macroeconomic developments which are expected to positively impact price dynamics in the near to medium term. These include the stability in the foreign exchange market with the resultant appreciation of the exchange rate.
“The committee highlighted the benefits of the improvements in the external sector to exchange rate stability, including the convergence of rates between the Nigeria Foreign Exchange Market and the Bureau de Change, and urged the bank not to relent in its effort to boost market liquidity.
“In this regard, the committee acknowledged recent measures introduced by the Bank, such as the Electronic Foreign Exchange Matching System (B-Match) and the Nigeria Foreign Exchange Code, to foster transparency, ethics, and credibility in the market. The MPC is, thus, of the view that following major policy measures undertaken by the monetary and fiscal authorities, the flow of foreign direct and portfolio investments as well as diaspora remittances are expected to increase as investor and stakeholder confidence improves.”
