Naira Suffers Major Loss Against Dollar, Drops Three Times

The Nigerian naira has lost marginally against the US dollar as it experienced three instances of depreciation against the US dollar in the foreign exchange market.

Data from FMDQ revealed that on Friday, the naira weakened to N1,169.99 per dollar, contrasting with Thursday’s rate of N1,154.08. This signifies a decrease of N15.91 compared to the previous day’s trading figure.

The first depreciation occurred on Tuesday, marking a shift from months of stable gains. Subsequently, on Thursday, the naira experienced another decline, losing N81 against the dollar. This means that Naira has lost over N96.91 to dollar within three days at a time when many Nigerians were expecting Naira to get firm and exchange at least less than N1,000 to a dollar.

Governor Olayemi Cardoso of the Central Bank of Nigeria attributed the potential sustainability of the naira’s appreciation to liquidity in the country’s foreign exchange market. While analysts attributed the naira’s depreciation to the depletion of Nigeria’s foreign reserves, Cardoso clarified that it was primarily due to foreign loan repayments.

As of April 15, the nation’s FX reserves had reduced to $32.29 billion.