By Elizabeth Adegbesan
The naira today appreciated to N1,395 per dollar in the parallel market from N1,403 per dollar on Thursday.
Similarly, the naira appreciated to N1,370 per dollar in the Nigerian Foreign Exchange Market, NFEM.
Data from the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, showed that the indicative exchange rate for the market fell to N1,370 per dollar from N1,371.4 per dollar on Thursday, indicating N1.4 appreciation for the naira.
Consequently, the margin between the parallel and official markets narrowed to N25 per dollar from N31.6 per dollar on Thursday.
The interbank turnover at NFEM fell by 17.6 per cent to N70.4 million yesterday from N85.5 million the previous day.
This week the naira strengthened by N15 against the dollar in the official market but remained stable in the parallel market.
Analysts in the financial sector expect the naira to be stable next week.
In their weekly financial market review, analysts at Cowry Asset Management Plc said, “Looking ahead, the naira is expected to remain relatively stable, supported by improved foreign exchange, FX, liquidity and healthy external reserves.”
