Naira Gains Ground Against Dollar in Both Official and Parallel Markets

By Babatunji Wusu

• Naira appreciates to N1,530 per dollar in the parallel market
• Official market rate improves to N1,532.5 per dollar
• CBN data shows N3 gain from Monday’s rate of N1,535.5
• Spread between official and parallel market widens to N2.5

The naira strengthened against the US dollar in both the official and parallel markets on Tuesday, signaling improved market sentiment and foreign exchange liquidity.

In the parallel market, the naira appreciated to N1,530 per dollar, up from N1,540 on Monday. Similarly, in the Nigerian Foreign Exchange Market (NFEM), the local currency gained N3 to close at N1,532.5 per dollar, compared to N1,535.5 recorded the previous day.

Data from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) confirmed the appreciation, marking a notable improvement in the naira’s performance across trading windows. As a result, the gap between the official and parallel market rates widened to N2.5 per dollar up from just 50 kobo the previous day.

While the margin remains relatively narrow, the development reflects ongoing fluctuations in the FX market and could indicate growing stability in the official window, bolstered by recent policy measures from the CBN aimed at improving liquidity and transparency.

Market analysts will continue to monitor these movements closely, especially as the government intensifies efforts to unify exchange rates and curb speculative activities in the forex space.