Lagos State – The naira remained broadly stable against the United States dollar on Friday, with only marginal movements recorded across both the official Nigerian Foreign Exchange Market and the parallel market.
Data published by the Central Bank of Nigeria showed the official NFEM exchange rate hovering around N1,379 per dollar, with independent market trackers placing the official rate in the N1,379 to N1,384 range during the day’s trading.
In the parallel market, commonly referred to as the black market, the dollar traded around N1,409 for buying and N1,420 for selling in Lagos and other major currency hubs, with rates varying slightly across dealers.
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The gap between the official and street markets remained relatively narrow at about N30 to N40 per dollar, much smaller than the wide premiums seen during previous periods of acute foreign exchange shortages.
Analysts attribute the sustained narrowing of the spread to improved dollar liquidity, sustained portfolio investment inflows and stronger oil revenue receipts in recent months.
The Central Bank has not signalled any imminent policy shift, with traders expecting the current trading band to hold in the near term barring a significant change in market conditions.
