The naira gained marginally against the United States dollar on Tuesday, rising to N1,499/$ from its previous record low of N1,534/$ on the official Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market.
This translates to a 2.3 percent gain or N35 increase, as reported by FMDQ Exchange, a platform that publishes official foreign exchange trading data in the country.
The depreciation of the naira has been ongoing since President Bola Tinubu removed fuel subsidies and unified the exchange rate market. The local currency’s value dropped from N464.67/$ in May 2023 to N1,490 at the official market by February 2024. During this period, the naira also weakened from N763/$ to N1,470/$ at the parallel market.
On Monday, the naira hit a new low of N1,534/$, just weeks after reaching N1,099.05/$ on December 8. Additionally, it plummeted to an all-time low of N1,348.63/$ on January 30, 2024.
Meanwhile, at the parallel market, the naira continued its upward trend, increasing from N1,503 to N1,530 as the closing rates on Monday.
Bureau De Change operators in Abuja, commonly referred to as currency traders, informed newsmen that the dollar commenced trading at N1,509/$ and was sold at N1,515/$ during intra-day trading, ultimately closing at N1,530/dollar.
Ibrahim Taura, a BDC operator in Wuse, Abuja, elaborated on the day’s proceedings, stating, “We initiated today’s trade at N1,509/$, but the rate concluded at N1,530/$.” He further noted that despite the high rate, market sales remained brisk, with demand for the greenback continuing to rise.
Nuhu Zakari, another BDC operator at the Abuja airport, mentioned that he purchased the dollar at N1,525.
Meanwhile, there was a significant 54.2 percent decline in dollar sales by banks, dropping from $253.77 million on Friday to $116.11 million on Monday, according to the latest sales data by the FMDG.
In the previous week, commercial banks collectively sold a total of $1.97 billion within a single week.