Naira Sustains Gain On Parallel Market, Weakens To N1,534/$1 On NEFM

The value of the naira for the second day trading continued its appreciation, while it depreciated on the official end of the market as the Central Bank of Nigeria launched the Nigeria Foreign Exchange Code as part of its ongoing reforms in the foreign exchange market.

By the close of trading on Tuesday, the value of the naira stood at N1,640 a N10 appreciation as against N1,650 which it closed on Monday. This brings its two-day appreciation at the parallel market to N20 or 1.2 per cent from the N1,660 which it closed last week.

However, the naira continued to depreciate at the official end of the market closing Tuesday’s trading activities at N1,534.55 to the dollar as against N1,533.63 which it closed on Monday. The CBN had on Monday released the FX Code which is expected to promote a robust, fair, liquid, open, and appropriately transparent forex market.

The FX Code requires Market Participants to ensure that illegal financial transfers are avoided, and appropriate money laundering policies put in place to protect the integrity of the domestic markets and the global financial framework as a whole.

The apex bank while noting that it seeks a flexible exchange rate regime where the value of the naira is determined by market forces according to the demand and supply of foreign exchange, said “the FX Code is being developed to respond to emerging issues and address the dynamic nature of the financial markets and specifically address emerging challenges in the foreign exchange market.”