Naira reverses losses, appreciates on the parallel market

  The Naira yesterday recorded its biggest daily gain against the dollar, as it appreciated by 3.3 per cent to close at N503 per dollar in the parallel market, as against the high point of N520 recorded earlier in the week.


   Bureaux De Change, BDC, attributed the appreciation to sharp fall in demand for dollars due to the new foreign exchange measures announced by the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, on Monday.

   The CBN on Tuesday commenced implementation of its new foreign exchange policy by selling $411 million to banks to meet foreign exchange demand for visible and invisible transactions.

   The apex bank had offered $500 million at the forwards segment of the forex market with $370.8 million taken up by the banks.

The apex bank also made spot sales of $1.5 million to four banks, totalling $6 million, as well as other transactions.

   Prior to these measures, the Naira depreciated persistently in the parallel market from N495 per dollar at the end of January to N520 per dollar on Monday.

  This trend was however reversed on Tuesday as the parallel market exchange rate dropped to N516 per dollar, and yesterday to N503 per dollar.