The naira, Nigeria’s money, became weaker against the US dollar. On Thursday, July 25, 2024, it was worth N1,603.80 for one dollar.
Just a day before, it was N1,586.71 for one dollar. This means the naira got weaker by 1.07% in just one day.
This is the lowest value for the naira since March 14, 2024, when it was worth N1,608.98 for one dollar.
On Thursday, people traded naira for dollars at different prices. The highest price was N1,620 for one dollar, and the lowest was N1,519 for one dollar. There was a lot of demand for dollars.
Just three days earlier, the naira was doing better and gained value against the dollar, having its best performance since March.
Less Foreign Exchange Turnover
Newslodge, a news source, noted that there was 23.35% less foreign exchange (FX) traded. On Thursday, only $131.09 million was traded, down from $171.03 million.
This happened even though the Central Bank said it would keep providing money to different markets.
The Central Bank said they sold $106.5 million to 29 banks to help provide more dollars.
This was the second time in a month the Central Bank sold dollars to banks to help with the high demand.
To try to balance the foreign exchange market, the bank sold $122.67 million to 46 banks two weeks ago.
On July 18, 2024, the Central Bank said they would sell dollars to money traders to help manage invisible transactions. Each trader could buy $20,000 at a rate of N1,450 for one dollar.
Even with these efforts from the Central Bank, the naira has been losing value this month.
The Central Bank blamed the drop in naira value on high demands from companies and the summer holiday season.
Newslodge also said the strong US dollar and the summer holiday have increased the need for dollars, putting more pressure on the naira.
Need to Know
- The Central Bank Governor, Yemi Cardoso, said the naira had been at its worst in terms of value drop but is now being better managed.
- In a talk with Bloomberg TV in London, Cardoso said he was happy with how they managed the currency issue in the past months.
- When asked if the naira will get stronger, the Central Bank chief said it depends on many factors, including fiscal policies.
- Cardoso said they will keep working on economic fundamentals to positively impact the market.
- Experts at United Capital Plc think that the exchange rate will settle at around N1,423.26 to N1,550 for one dollar by the end of 2024.