The foreign exchange (FX) market on Thursday recorded a two-week low of $87.51 million supply, pushing the naira to lose its value marginally. On September 2, 2024, the market recorded $71.18 million in dollar supply.
The naira on Thursday lost 0.28 percent (N4.37) as the dollar was quoted at N1, 544.02 compared to N1,539.65 quoted on Wednesday at the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEM), data from FMDQ Securities Exchange Limited, indicated.
The dollar supplied by willing buyers and willing sellers dropped by 37.26 percent to $87.51 million on Thursday from $139.48 million on Wednesday at NAFEM.
The intraday high for the dollar closed at N1,670, the same rate as of Wednesday. Conversely, the intraday low saw the dollar trading at N1,535 on Thursday, down from N1,530, the previous day.
At the parallel market, popularly called the black market, the naira lost N3 as the dollar closed at N1,663 as against N1,660 closed since the week.
Read also: Naira hits six-month low in official FX market
Bismarck Rewane, managing director and CEO of Financial Derivatives Company Limited, projected the naira to trade at N1,550 per U.S. dollar on the parallel market.
Speaking at Access Bank corporate customers forum in Lagos, he said the exchange rate has aligned and would be part of a more stable and functioning foreign exchange system, aided by policies such as intervention funds, diaspora remittances, and adjustments in exchange rates. Notably, creative industries like arts and tourism, are also expected to contribute to inflows into the forex market, supporting the economy further.
On the positive side, the foreign exchange market will see an efficient auction system, and unencumbered foreign reserves will stabilise at $20 billion. Inflation, currently a major concern, is projected to decline to 22 percent, allowing the Monetary Policy Rate (MPR) to drop to 20 percent per annum. This reduction is expected to lower the level of non-performing loans in the banking sector.
