The Naira continued to lose ground against the US dollar at the foreign exchange market on Wednesday, as the demand for the greenback outweighed the supply. The local currency closed at N882.24 per dollar at the official market, down by 0.41 per cent from N878.61 on Tuesday, according to data from FMDQ.
At the parallel market, the Naira also weakened by 0.37 per cent to trade at N1,365 per dollar, compared to N1,360 on Tuesday. The depreciation of the Naira came as the forex turnover at the official market fell by 3.18 per cent to $56.60 million on Wednesday, from $58.44 million on Tuesday.
The Naira has been under pressure in recent days, as the country faces a shortage of foreign exchange due to low oil prices and reduced remittances. The Naira had gained slightly on Tuesday, after losing value on Friday and Monday.
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) governor, Olayemi Cardoso, said on Wednesday that the apex bank was committed to ensuring a realistic exchange rate for the Naira.
He spoke at the Nigeria Economic Group outlook for 2024, where he outlined the CBN’s policies and interventions to support the economy.
He said the CBN would work towards real price discovery in the foreign exchange market, and avoid artificial interventions that could distort the market.