The value of the naira in the black market continues to appreciate against the dollar. The latest movement has closed the gap with the official rate.
According to BDC operators the dollar crashed further on Thursday, February 6 and now sells at N1,552. While the buying rate is quoted at N1,530.
The latest development marks an improvement from the N1,582 selling rate and the N1,565/$ buying rate quoted on Wednesday.
A BDC trader, Abdullahi disclosed that the dollar is experiencing a swift decline in the foreign exchange market.
He said: “We are being very careful when buying dollars because we don’t know what will happen in the next few hours. The dollar market is at a low, and we are having fewer customers, even online where we advertise our rates.”
Dollar, Naira Official and unofficial market rate gap closes
The latest movement in the naira exchange rate indicates that the gap between the official and black markets is nearing convergence.
FMDQ Securities on Thursday, February 6, revealed that the value of the naira in the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEX), the official market, closed at N1,500.65/$ With the black market exchange rate now at N1,530/$, the gap between the official and black markets is now less than N31.
CBN’s latest policies to help naira
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) this week announced that it has extended the window of allowing Bureau De Change (BDC) operators to buy FX from the official market until the end of May.
This policy allows BDCs to purchase $25,000 worth of forex per week and should not resell to their customers at a profit margin above one per cent. Also, BDCs can only disburse purchased FX for specific transactions, with a maximum of $5,000 per transaction, quarterly.
