By Modupe Gbadeyanka
Last Friday, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) announced the sale of 69 million Chinese Yuan (CNY) to customers seeking foreign exchange in the agricultural and raw material sector.
It was disclosed that the Chinese Yuan was made available only to customers with Renminbi denominated Letters of Credit for agriculture as well as raw materials and machinery.
According to the acting Director in charge of Corporate Communications at the CBN, Mr Isaac Okorafor, the exercise was conducted through a combination of spot and 15-day tenor.
Mr Okorafor disclosed that the availability of Renminbi would eventually ease pressure on the Nigerian foreign exchange market, attributing the relative stability in the foreign exchange market to the continued intervention of the CBN as well as the sustained increase in crude oil prices in the international market.
Few months ago, the Nigerian government signed a currency swap deal with the Chinese government in a bid to ease pressure on the Naira.
Business Post reports that at the foreign exchange market, one Chinese Yuan is exchanged for N52.97k.
Adedapo Adesanya