The pressure on the local currency intensified on Thursday as one dollar traded for N410 at the black market.
Foreign exchange users are buying up the dollar to hedge against potential devaluation of the naira as the price of oil has slumped below $34 per barrel.
Investigations show that dollar was quoted at N410/$ at Apapa, Lagos, while in Festac area of the State, it closed at N400/$.
In the long term the naira depreciates against the US dollar in line with the difference in inflation between the two currencies. Trying to stop the naira from depreciating has proven a forlorn activity, according to Coronation Merchant Bank Limited.
The bank believes that the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) would keep the exchange rate at close to N362.50/$ for most, if not all, of 2020. But the effect the bank said would to add pressure on the naira as its fair value slips against the US dollar.
HOPE MOSES-ASHIKE
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.
