By John Ikani
Nigeria’s currency, the Naira, has continued its free fall, reaching N1005 per dollar in the parallel market yesterday, in contrast to the N995 per dollar rate on Tuesday.
Likewise, within the Investors and Exporters (I&E) window, the naira also saw a decline, settling at N775.31 per dollar.
According to data from FMDQ, the indicative exchange rate for the I&E window increased to N775.31 per dollar, up from Tuesday’s N755.08 per dollar, indicating a depreciation of N20.23 for the naira.
The trading volume of dollars in this window rose by 6.3 percent, reaching $144.55 million compared to Tuesday’s $135.98 million.
As a result, the gap between the official and parallel market exchange rates widened to N229.69 per dollar, as opposed to Tuesday’s N217.92 per dollar.
Experts have noted that the absence of intervention by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) this month has allowed the naira’s value to decline in the parallel market.
It would be recalled that Nigeria’s President Bola Tinubu recently unified the nation’s exchange rates, prompting the CBN to move towards a free-floating system.
The shift enables deposit money banks (DMBs) and foreign exchange market dealers to freely buy and sell forex at rates determined by the market.
The change, which took effect on June 14, marks a transition from the previous multiple forex regime to a more flexible approach.
