Naira Plummets to N1,620/$ in Parallel Market

In a sharp downturn, the value of the Nigerian naira tumbled to N1,620 against the US dollar in the parallel market, marking a decline from its previous standing at N1,615 per dollar on Tuesday.

Similarly, the Nigerian Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEM) witnessed a depreciation of the naira to N1,615.94 per dollar.

According to data from the Financial Markets Dealers Quotations (FMDQ), the indicative exchange rate for NAFEM surged to N1,615.94 per dollar from N1,603.38 per dollar on Tuesday, reflecting a substantial depreciation of N12.56 for the naira.

Trading in the market saw fluctuations, with the intraday high reaching N1,635 per dollar and the intraday low dropping to N1,500 per dollar, resulting in a significant swing of N135. Notably, the volume of dollars traded surged by 103.5 percent, reaching $248.75 million, compared to $122.18 million traded on Tuesday.

Consequently, the gap between the parallel market rate and NAFEM narrowed to N4.06 per dollar, down from N11.62 per dollar reported on Tuesday.

This latest development underscores the ongoing volatility and challenges faced by the Nigerian currency in the foreign exchange market.