Naira drops further to 1,233/dollar at parallel market

NIGERIA, Dec 26 – The Naira struggles for survival as  pressure intensify on the currency of  Africa’s biggest economy.

The naira on Monday reportedly exchanged to the dollar at 1,233/$  at the parallel market, according to Bureau de Change (BDC) operators.

Some BDC operators who spoke to The Press said, the local currency which was bought and sold at 1,228/$ and 1,233/$ had traded at the same rate on Friday.

Following the figures obtained from Abokifx, it showed that the naira to the Pound Sterling at buying and selling was 1,550/ £ and 1,565/ £, while Euro was 1,290/€ and 1,305/€ respectively.

A BDC operator who spoke to The PUNCH from his base in Lagos, Kamarudeen Ibrahim, said, “The naira traded at 1,220/$ a week earlier, but weakened to 1,233/$ by the end of the week.”

While Another operator, Akeem Yusuf, stated that, “The naira was sold for 1,233/$ on Friday; Today Monday, it did not change because people are not buying.” The naira weakened slightly at the parallel market by 1.1 % or N13.

Nevertheless, on the Investor & Exporter forex window, the naira appreciated slightly on Friday, according to data obtained from the FMDQ.

The local currency which closed at   889.63/$ on Thursday, gain slightly by 0.42 % or N3.75 to close at 885.88/$ on Friday.

Trading commenced at the official market at N915/$ and reached a high of N1,248/$ before closing at N885.88. The market recorded a total turnover of $92.16m on Friday.

The current pressure on the currency experts believes will slightly reduce if the economy picks up earlier than projected. Predictions though not official, indicates that the Nigeria’s economy may do better in 2024 than what is currently seen. And this will be subject to the Tinubu’s administration’s commitment to major economic reforms and productive policies of government in the new year.