Naira fell to N527 per dollar at the parallel market on Monday, a N3 decline from the N524 per dollar it closed on Friday.
This is according to the data on AbokiFX, a prominent tracker of the black market rate.
Compared to the exchange at the black market on July 28, a day after the Central Bank stopped forex sale to Bureaux De Change operators in the country, naira is weaker by N5.
The spread between the exchange rate at the parallel market and the rate at the I & E FX Window where naira is exchanges officially remains large.
The exchange rate at the Window closed at N411.63 per dollar on Monday, representing a 37kobo gain compared to the Friday’s closing rate of N412 per dollar.
Forex turnover at the I & E window dropped by 62% on Monday to $81.81 million from $216.52 million recorded on Friday.
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Naira weakened after the CBN announced on Tuesday July 27 that it has stopped the sale of forex to the Bureau De Change (BDC) operators in the country with immediate effect. Also, last week the CBN barred microfinance banks from forex transactions.
Naira had strengthened N506 per dollar at the parallel market following the Central Bank’s instruction to deposit money banks not to refuse any forex request with proper documentation.
Nevertheless, naira has continued to fall against the dollar, with several analyst saying that the CBN stoppage of forex allocation to BDC operators has drained liquidity in the black market and could further weaken the naira.
Ifunanya Ikueze is an Engineer, Safety Professional, Writer, Investor, Entrepreneur and Educator.
