Naira inches up against dollar at parallel market

The naira on Thursday marginally appreciated against the dollar at the parallel market, the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports.

The Nigerian currency gained three points to exchange at N462 to a dollar, after it closed at N465 on Wednesday, while the Pound Sterling and the Euro closed at N550 and N477, respectively.

At the Bureau De Change (BDC) window, the Naira was sold at N399 to a dollar CBN controlled rate, while the Pound Sterling and the Euro closed at N550 and N500, respectively.

The Naira exchanged at N305.80 at the interbank market.

Currency traders expressed optimism that liquidity boost in the market would help to shore up the Naira rate.

However, An economist, Mr Harrison Owoh has attributed the instability in the exchange rate in spite of liquidity boost in the FOREX market to excessive demand for dollars.

Owoh said that the injection of 1.14 billion dollars by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to the interbank market were majorly at the service of letters of credits and invisibles.

According to him, it is the cash at hand that brings down the exchange rate not mere letters of credit.

He explained that China, which is the seat of importation business, was on holiday for a full month, adding that the vacation slowed than importation activities by Nigerian importers.

The economist said that since the resumption in importation, the demand for FOREX had outstripped its supply.