Naira loses 1.47% on black market

The naira on Wednesday weakened against the dollar, losing 1.47 percent at the parallel market also, known as the black market.

The local currency was quoted at N1,500 per dollar on Wednesday, a day after the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) raised its monetary policy rate (MPR), by 150 basis points to 26.25 percent, the third straight time this year.

The naira had appreciated against the dollar for two days to N1,478 from its renewed peak of N1,530 on May 14, 2024, on the parallel market

A trader said that there was a significant demand for the dollar, but it was not readily available in large quantities.

At the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEM) on Tuesday, the naira appreciated marginally by 0.23 percent as the dollar was quoted at N1,465.68 as against N1,468.99 quoted on Monday according to the data from the FMDQ Securities Exchange Limited.

The intraday high closed at N1,549 per dollar on Tuesday, stronger than N1,556 closed on Monday. The intraday low closed flat at N1,401/$1 compared to N1,400 quoted on Monday.

The daily foreign exchange market turnover increased by 66.14 percent to $268.17 million on Tuesday from $161.41 million recorded on Monday.