Naira forwards hint Nigeria may be next to devalue

Could Nigeria be the next major oil producer in Africa to devalue its currency? Traders in the currency’s forwards market seem to think so.

The three-month naira non-deliverable forward price climbed to 238 on Thursday, its highest point since mid-February, Bloomberg reports.

The Abuja-based central bank has held the naira at N197 to N199 per dollar since early March, but recent comments by President Muhammadu Buhari and further falls in oil prices have prompted speculation the central bank could change policy.

NDFs are more accessible to foreign investors because they’re traded offshore and exempt from local dealing restrictions on the currency. Africa’s other main oil producer, Angola, devalued earlier this week.