Naira loses N100.00k against dollar in one year

Assuming the naira/dollar exchange rate which is currently at N462 at the Bureau De Change (BDC) segment remains till the end of December, Nigeria’s currency would have lost N100.00k in one year.

The rate opened at N360.75/US$ on January 2, 2019, and reached a high of N365.87/US$ on January 8, 2019, as a result of perceived political tensions in the run-up to the presidential elections in February 2019. The rate closed at N362.00/US$ at the end of December 2019. The monthly average rate opened at N360.94/US$ in January 2019 and closed at N360.25/US$ in December 2019.

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) 2019 activity report revealed that the monthly average rate opened at N360.94/US$ in January 2019 and closed at N360.25/US$ in December 2019.

In the preceding year, the rate opened at N363.00/US$ on January 2, 2018, and closed at N361.00/US$ at end-December 2018, reaching a high of N367.50/US$ on December 3, 2018. The monthly average rate opened at N363.20/US$ in January 2018 and closed at N363.46/US$ in December 2018.

Nigeria’s currency on Monday weakened by N1.33k as the dollar was trading at an average rate of N464 as against N462.67k traded on Friday on the black market.

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The naira depreciation was attributed to increased demand for the greenback by the end-users amid dollar shortages.

At the Investors and Exporters (I&E) forex window, the foreign exchange market opened with an indicative rate of N386.21k on Monday. This signals N0.35k depreciation when compared with N385.86k opened with on Friday, data from FMDQ showed.

Naira remained stable at N386.00 per dollar on Friday for the third consecutive trading session. Analysts at FSDH Research said most participants maintained bids between N380.00 and N393.51 per dollar.

The foreign exchange daily turnover rose by 9.12 percent to $163.71 million on Friday from $150.02 million recorded on the previous day.

The CBN report showed that the premium between the I&E and BDC rates, which was N3.67 (1.01 percent) on January 2, 2019, widened to N5.87 (1.26 percent) on January 8, 2019, and contracted to N2.51 (0.69 percent) on December 31, 2019. The average monthly premium was N2.82 in January and rose to N3.32 by end of December 2019.

In the preceding year, the premium between the I&E and BDC rates was N1.79 (0.49 percent) on January 2, 2018, widened to N4.52 (1.26 percent) by mid-September 2018 and contracted to N3.07 (0.85 percent) on December 31, 2018. The average monthly premium was N2.87 in January and contracted to N0.43 in December 2018.

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.