Naira firms as CBN boosts liquidity with $195m

The investors and exporters foreign exchange market recorded $64.74 million daily turnover on Monday as naira firmed up by N0.62k against the US dollar on the window.
After trading on the same day, naira closed at N362.21k gaining 0.17 percent compared with N362.83k traded on Friday on the I&E forex window, data from the FMDQ show.
Naira traded stable on Monday, closing at N305.90k at the interbank spot foreign exchange, being the official rate of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN). At the black market, the local currency also closed stable at between N365 and N366 per dollar.
The CBN, in continuation of its forex supply drive, on Monday, July 17, enhanced liquidity in the interbank foreign exchange market to the tune of $195 million supply.
Figures released by the bank show that it offered the total sum of $100 million to the wholesale segment, while the Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) segment received the sum of $50 million. The invisibles segment, comprising tuition fees, medical payments and Basic Travel Allowance (BTA), among others, received $45 million.
Confirming the figures obtained, Isaac Okorafor, CBN acting director, said the CBN was pleased with the state of the forex market, adding that the bank would continue to intervene in order to sustain the liquidity in the market and guarantee the international value of the naira.
According to Okorafor, the bank remained determined to achieve its objective of rates convergence, hence the unrelenting injection of intervention funds into the foreign exchange market.
Speaking further, Okorafor expressed optimism that the naira would sustain its run against the dollar and other major currencies around the world, considering the level of transparency in the market. He therefore advised stakeholders to abide by the guidelines to ensure transparency in the market.
It would be recalled that the CBN last week intervened in the various segments of the forex market with the sum of $396.8 million.
Meanwhile, the naira continued to maintain its stability in the forex market, exchanging at an average of N364/$1 in the BDC segment of the market on Monday, July 17, 2017.