CBN intervenes in FX market, injects $148m to boost naira

By : Oluyemi Ogunseyin

Date: 26 July 2024 3:15pm WAT

(FILES) In this file photo taken on April 18, 2016 US dollars are seen at a currency exchange office in the commune of Gombe, in the Lukunga district of Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo. - After a few months of stability around 1,600 to 1,620 Congolese francs to the dollar, the congolese franc has resumed its plunge against the US dollar since mid-July, causing the foreign exchange market to overheat. The rise of the dollar against the Congolese franc has thus caused a surge in prices in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and reduced the margins of economic operators already facing the decline of consumers' purchasing power. (Photo by JUNIOR KANNAH / AFP)

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has disbursed $148 million to 29 authorised dealers to stabilise the foreign exchange market amid the recent decline of the naira.
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The CBN, in a statement on its website, said the sales occurred on July 22 and 23, 2024, with exchange rates ranging from N1470.00 to N1510.00 per dollar.

The sale followed a previous sale of $122.67 million to 46 dealers aimed at curbing market volatility and promoting stability.

The apex bank had also recently announced plans to sell $20,000 to each Bureau de Change (BDC) at an exchange rate of N1,450 per dollar.
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Despite these interventions, the naira has continued to depreciate, trading above N1,600 per dollar at the official market on Thursday.

The statement said, “The Central Bank of Nigeria sold a cumulative sum of $148,000,000 in the Nigerian Foreign Exchange market to authorised dealers on July 22 and 23, 2024, at an exchange rate of N1470.00 to N1510.00 per dollar.”
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