Naira at I& E FX window appreciates by 0.02% against Dollar

By Kayode Tokede

Naira at the Investors & Exporters Foreign Exchange (I & E FX) window on Tuesday appreciated by 0.02 per cent to close at N414.83 against the dollar.

The local currency close up by 0.10 per cent and 0.99 per cent against the Euro and Pound sterling to close at N482.09 and N559.41 respectively.

Analysts at Investment One research said, “Going forward, we expect the FX market to be dictated by heightened dollar demand and CBN FX policies.”

Money market rates decreased today as Open Buy Back and Overnight rates fell by 233basis points and 225basis points to close at 13per cent and 13.75per cent respectively.

The bond market traded on a negative note today as yields rose on most maturities. The yields on the 5yr and 7yr and 10yr benchmark bonds increase by 29basis points, 33basis points and 6basis points to close at 10.25per ent, 11.55per cent and 12.02per cent respectively.

Meanwhile, the country’s foreign reserve gained further by $135 million on last Thursday to close at $36.089 billion compared to $35.954 billion recorded as of the previous day. The latest increase represents a 0.38per cent boost in the country’s foreign reserve and the highest level since February of the year.

The reserve has now gained $2.075 billion in the month of September 2021, while the recent gain puts the year-to-date gain at $714.77 million.

The recent increase in the reserve position, which has continued since the 25th of August is in line with recent reports suggesting that Nigeria’s foreign reserve position could grow as high as $40 billion by the end of September 2021.

Although, hitting $40 billion seems unlikely but it’s a major step in the right direction especially with the oversubscription of the $4 billion Eurobond sourced by the Federal Government from the international debt market.