By Cowry Asset
In the just concluded week, the Naira depreciated against the US Dollar at both the Investors & Exporters Forex Window (I&E FXW) and the Bureau De Change segment by 0.07 percent and 0.28 percent to N360.35/$ and N362/$ respectively on a week-on-week (w-o-w) basis.
This was in spite of weekly injections by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) worth $210 million into the foreign exchange market of which $100 million was allocated to Wholesale (SMIS), $55 million was allocated to Small and Medium Scale Enterprises and $55 million was sold for invisibles.
However, the Naira closed flat against the US Dollar at both the interbank foreign exchange market and parallel (black) market segments at N330/$ and N364/$ respectively.
Meanwhile, dated forward contracts at the interbank over-the-counter (OTC) segment mostly depreciated despite increase in the foreign exchange reserves – 1 month, 2 months, 3 months contracts depreciated by 0.06 percent, 0.09 percent and 0.17 percent to close at N364.14/$, N368.16/$, and 372.38/$ respectively.
However, spot rate and 6 months contracts appreciated w-o-w by 0.02 percent and 0.24 percent to close at N30S.65/$ and N385.57/$ respectively.
This week, we expect stability in the Naira as global crude oil prices retains its upbeat which should result in further build-up in foreign reserve.
Adedapo Adesanya