The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has reported the sale of $543.5 million to authorized dealer banks from September 6 to September 30, 2024 at a rate of N1,540 to N1,580. The transaction value is approximately N844.92 billion.
In a statement issued in Abuja on Friday, the Director-General of the Financial Markets Department, Omolala Duke, said the sale would ease market volatility due to high demand for imports of primary goods and seasonal foreign exchange (FX) needs. He explained that his purpose was to do so. Over 11 business days, the CBN sold these dollars to an average of 26 authorized dealer banks.
Despite these efforts, the naira only appreciated by 2.77%, closing at 1,541 naira on the official market, but fell to 1,700 naira per dollar by the end of September on the parallel market.
Mr. Duke stressed that the CBN sale will be done through two-way quotations on the Nigerian foreign exchange market and is aimed at bringing stability amid mounting pressure on the currency. She said, “This press release is intended to educate and provide guidance to the public on FX pricing, taking cues from the range of rates at which the CBN has sold FX to authorized dealer banks. ” he said.
The decline in the value of the Naira continues to cause concern among the public as it affects the prices of essential goods.
The local currency has depreciated by more than 50 percent in just one year since Olayemi Cardoso took over as CBN governor.
Cardoso linked the foreign exchange demand pressure to monthly disbursements from the Federal Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) and reiterated that the bank is making concerted efforts to strengthen the naira.
Nigeria’s foreign exchange reserves increased by nearly 5% in September, increasing from $36.24 billion to $38.058 billion by the end of the month.
A detailed breakdown of CBN’s dollar-denominated sales reveals fluctuations in sales value from day to day, with $39 million sold on September 6th at rates between N1,580 and N1,605; The exchange rate has fluctuated.
The CBN plans to continue to promote foreign exchange supply as part of its broader management strategy to stabilize the naira in the foreign exchange market.
