Naira flat on black market exchanges for 1,495/$

The naira on Thursday exchanges flat at N1,495 against the dollar on the parallel market, popularly called black market.

This represents a flat rate of 0.33 percent compared to N1,490 exchanged on Wednesday according to data collated from online trading platforms and some street traders.

The dollar sold for N1,475 at Broad Street Lagos, where more throng around some banks to purchase the greenback.

The naira on Wednesday depreciated for the second trading day in the month despite an increase in the foreign currency reserves by 1.45 percent in one month.

After trading n Wednesday, the naira lost 0.78 percent of its value as the dollar was quoted at N1,488.60, weaker than N1,476.95 quoted on Tuesday at the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEM), data from the FMDQ Securities Exchange Limited, indicated.

The naira closed flat, losing 0.06 percent as the dollar was quoted at N1,476.95 on Tuesday, compared to N1,476.12 quoted on Monday.

Nigeria’s external reserves, which gives the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) the firepower to defend the has increased by 1.45 percent in one month to $32.77 billion in June 4, 2024 compared to $32.30 billion in May 3, 2024, according to data from the CBN website.

The naira depreciation was attributed to increased demand for dollars amid supply shortage. The dollar supplied by the willing sellers and willing buyers, including commercial banks, dropped by 13.32 percent to $205.43 million on Wednesday from $236.99 million recorded on Tuesday.

According to the FX market summary released by the FMDQ, the intraday high closed at N1,520 on Wednesday, slightly weaker than N1,500 closed for the past two trading days. The intraday low weakened to N1,363.85 on Wednesday as against N1,362.15 closed on Tuesday.

Hope Moses-Ashike

Hope Moses-Ashike is an Associate Editor, Banking and Finance, with more than a decade of experience reporting on Nigeria’s financial system and broader economy. She closely tracks market movements, monetary policy decisions, company disclosures, regulatory actions, economic indicators, and global developments, and interprets what they mean for businesses, investors, policymakers, and households. Her reporting helps readers understand complex issues such as inflation trends, foreign exchange market dynamics, interest rate decisions, bank performance, and investment risks. She also covers major international events and periodically travels to Washington, D.C., to report on the World Bank/IMF Spring and Annual Meetings. Her dedication to financial journalism has earned her multiple recognitions and invitations to high-level professional development programmes. She is an alumna of the International Visitors Leadership Programme (IVLP) in the United States and holds an Advanced Financial Journalism Certificate from the Press Association Training in London, UK. Her other notable achievements include completing the Lagos Business School CMC Programme, the Bloomberg Media Africa Initiative Programme, and a Master Class in Journalism at Rhodes University in South Africa.