Naira To Weaken Further At The Parallel Market This Week (See Why)

According to foreign exchange dealers and economic experts, the Naira will weaken further at the parallel market this week after shedding nine per cent of its value last week.

The local currency fell from 310 to 338 last week as acute shortage of the greenback lingered. The CBN has left the official exchange rate unchanged at N197 to the dollar on its official interbank window.

Forex dealers and experts expect the Naira to fall further at the parallel market this week as demand for the greenback continues to soar.

“The situation has got to the point of hysteria now; everybody wants to hold dollars. So the demand is rising and piling up,” the Chief Executive Officer, Cowry Asset Management Limited, Mr. Johnson Chukwu, said.

The local currency hit a record low of 338 to the dollar on Thursday as desperate importers scrambled for dollars to meet their obligations overseas.

The local currency had closed at 325, 318, 313.5 and 310 on Thursday, Wednesday, Tuesday and Monday, respectively.

“We see the Naira falling further in coming days if the central bank fails to lift the dollar restriction,” the Acting President, Association of Bureau De Change Operators, Aminu Gwadabe, said.