The value of the Nigerian currency, the naira, continued to strengthen against the US dollar in all foreign exchange markets.
According to data, the naira in the official market closed at N1,533.00/$1 in the Nigerian Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEM) on Friday, December 13, 2024.
Friday’s exchange rate represents a N1.50 or 0.09% gain against the dollar compared to N1,534.50/$1, which was transacted on Thursday.
The naira has benefitted from the new foreign exchange (FX) trading system of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), known as the Electronic Foreign Exchange Matching System (EFEMS).
The system instantly reflects data on all FX transactions conducted in the interbank market and approved by the CBN.
Speaking with Legit.ng on the naira’s recent surge, Aminu Gwadabe, the president of the Association of Bureaux De Change Operators of Nigeria (ABCON), attributed EFEM as one of three reasons naira is appreciating.
He said:
“The CBN’s EFEMS platform has helped eliminate the obscured nature of trading in the official/interbank foreign exchange market.”
Naira to dollar at black market
The naira’s positive momentum extended into the parallel market, commonly called the black market.
Street currency traders told Legit that the dollar also dropped in value against the naira.
Abudulahhi, a BDC trade,r in a chat with Legit.,ng said:
“On Friday we sold the dollar at N1,650/$1, this is N30 less than the preceding session’s value of N1,680/$1.”
Naira, pounds, euro exchange rate
CBN data also revealed that in the official market on Friday, the naira strengthened against the Pound Sterling by N12.58, closing the session at N1,942.19/£1, compared to the previous day’s N1,954.77/£1.
While against the euro, it gained N2.44 to close at N1,612.85/€1 versus Thursday’s closing price of N1,610.41/€1.
CBN adjusts Customs exchange rate
In a related development, the CBN has reduced slightly the customs duty exchange used to clear goods at the ports.
The adjustments follow the improvement of the naira in the foreign exchange market against the US dollar.
Importers looking to apply to clear their goods will be paying less based on the exchange rate adjustments from Monday.
