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Tag: Naira

  • Naira loses to dollar, closes at 419

    Naira loses to dollar, closes at 419

    The Naira on Monday depreciated at the Investors and Exporters window, exchanging at N419 to the dollar, a 0.48 per cent depreciation, weaker than N417 it traded on Friday.

    The open indicative rate closed at N419 to the dollar on Monday.

    An exchange rate of N423.00 to the dollar was the highest rate recorded within the day’s trading before it settled at N419.00.

    The Naira sold for as low as 410.84 to the dollar within the day’s trading.

    A total of 53.15 million dollars was traded in foreign exchange at the official Investors and Exporters window on Monday.

    In the black market rate, the naira sold at N590 to N595 to a dollar.

    Meanwhile, Prof. Hassan Oaikhenan of the Department of Economics, University of Benin, has attributed the currency’s loss to the limited supply of the green back.

    He said, “the depreciation is normal and not unexpected, given the demand pressures for the dollar in relation to the limited supply of the green back.

    “ So, we need not dwell on this, which has become the new normal in the trend behaviour of the exchange of the naira to such key currencies as the Euro, the Dollar, the British Pound sterling, among others’’.

  • Market forces against exchange rate not Emefiele, group blasts detractors

    Market forces against exchange rate not Emefiele, group blasts detractors

    A group under the platform of Nigeria Patriotic Quest (NPQ), has blasted campaigners of doom claiming the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, Godwin Emefiele could not manage Nigeria’s exchange rate.

    The Nigerian professionals, mostly based in the diaspora, in a statement signed by its National Coordinator, Ahmed Ja’Usman Tijani stated that market forces across the globe is the cause of Naira’s fluctuations.

    Citing instances across the globe the group explained that:

    “We seek by this press release to put the issues around the Naira exchange rate and the economy in proper perspective, for the benefit of those who may not be fully abreast of the reasons behind the issues facing our country today.
    The major factors are:

    “The persistent and drastic drop in the price of crude oil starting from 2015 up till the end of 2020. Nigeria as a mono-product export economy was dealt a heavy blow by this decline in the price of crude oil. Some of us may recall that by end of March 2020, Nigeria’s Brent crude was averaging $25 per barrel with Bonny Light even doing worse at $21 per barrel. We should not forget, that it was at this time that several cargoes of Nigerian crude oil were sailing the high seas with no takers.

    “We should further, bear in mind that this was at the time when Russia and Saudi Arabia were engaged in the mutually destructive oil price war that wreaked havoc on the economy of most oil-producing nations, especially Nigeria.

    “This situation affected the inflow of dollars into the economy and as can be expected led to the drop in the value of the Naira, due to a surfeit of Naira pursuing very scarce dollars. To put this in stark relief, the nation’s foreign reserves plunged from a high of $47 billion in 2012 to about $33 billion dollars in 2020.

    “We should give credit to Emefiele and his team at the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) for how they managed the national economy at this very troubling time without it collapsing totally.

    ” The Covid 19 pandemic also dealt a heavy blow on the economy, as a result of the lockdown of most areas of national life and the resultant negative impact on productivity and employment. This impacted the Naira adversely due to the near drying-up of forex inflows from oil and non oil sectors.

    ” Another major factor affecting the value of the Naira is the nation’s very poor industrial and productive base. We are an import dependent economy, as we import most of our major consumer and industrial goods including food, toiletries, textiles, cars, machineries etc. This resulted in very high demand for dollars in the face of ever dwindling forex inflows. Of course, this also impacted the value of the Naira negatively.

    “In 2021 when the price of crude oil began to recover appreciably, one would have thought that it is time to shout “uhuru”. However, this was not the case, as we were not in a position to benefit from the high prices as a result of our low oil production capacity. We have consistently been unable to meet up with our OPEC production quota of 1.8 million barrels per day due to persistent vandalisation of oil pipelines and facilities. Coupled with this is the blatant stealing of sometimes over 60 % of crude production.

    “This has meant that our production have hovered around 1.3 million barrels per day, unlike in the past when Nigeria had the capacity to produce up to 2 million or more barrels of oil per day.
    It was recently revealed that on a survey of a 12 km pipeline section, 300 theft points were discovered, this amounts to one theft point every 40 metres. No oil company or indeed nation can survive this rate of theft of it’s resources, outside the huge costs of repeatedly repairing these facilities.

    ” This is why Nigeria has not been able to benefit from the current high oil prices, sometimes in excess of $100 per barrel.
    Instead, what we have harvested from this, as a result of theft and disgraceful lack of refining capacity, is imported inflation as we are forced to import refined petroleum products at the high prevailing international prices with the associated high petroleum subsidies. These subsidies could have been invested in other productive sectors of the economy such as agriculture, industries and infrastructure, had it been we were able to fully leverage the benefits of being an oil-producing nation.

    ” As it stands now Nigeria sadly, cannot take advantage of the current boom in oil prices.

    The Naira definitely cannot fare better given such dire circumstances.

    Read full statement below:

    We note with great concern the recent upsurge of articles, commentaries and contributions from all manners of people and organisations with the sole aim of making Emefiele the scapegoat for the decline in the value of the Naira in recent years.
    Nothing can be further from the truth, as the reasons for the economic challenges facing the nation, with the consequent devaluation of the Naira, are very obvious to all objective commentators.

     

    NHowever, some self serving groups have adopted the infantile strategy of overturning the facts, in order to deceive the people and hopefully damage or curtail the ever rising profile of Godwin Emefiele.

    Apart from Emefiele being our choice candidate for the 2023 elections, we are also motivated in this rebuttal by the fact that it is totally unacceptable to us for an innocent man to suffer and be unjustly maligned through sheer propaganda and packaged false hoods.
    We will always stand for justice and the truth, no matter who is involved. This is because the failure to stand up for the truth is one of the major reasons for the nearly intractable problems facing us today in different spheres of our national life.
    We seek by this press release to put the issues around the Naira exchange rate and the economy in proper perspective, for the benefit of those who may not be fully abreast of the reasons behind the issues facing our country today.
    The major factors are:

    • The persistent and drastic drop in the price of crude oil starting from 2015 up till the end of 2020. Nigeria as a mono-product export economy was dealt a heavy blow by this decline in the price of crude oil. Some of us may recall that by end of March 2020, Nigeria’s Brent crude was averaging $25 per barrel with Bonny Light even doing worse at $21 per barrel. We should not forget, that it was at this time that several cargoes of Nigerian crude oil were sailing the high seas with no takers. We should further, bear in mind that this was at the time when Russia and Saudi Arabia were engaged in the mutually destructive oil price war that wreaked havoc on the economy of most oil-producing nations, especially Nigeria. This situation affected the inflow of dollars into the economy and as can be expected led to the drop in the value of the Naira, due to a surfeit of Naira pursuing very scarce dollars. To put this in stark relief, the nation’s foreign reserves plunged from a high of $47 billion in 2012 to about $33 billion dollars in 2020.

    We should give credit to Emefiele and his team at the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) for how they managed the national economy at this very troubling time without it collapsing totally.

    • The Covid 19 pandemic also dealt a heavy blow on the economy, as a result of the lockdown of most areas of national life and the resultant negative impact on productivity and employment. This impacted the Naira adversely due to the near drying-up of forex inflows from oil and non oil sectors.

    • Another major factor affecting the value of the Naira is the nation’s very poor industrial and productive base. We are an import dependent economy, as we import most of our major consumer and industrial goods including food, toiletries, textiles, cars, machineries etc. This resulted in very high demand for dollars in the face of ever dwindling forex inflows. Of course, this also impacted the value of the Naira negatively.

    • In 2021 when the price of crude oil began to recover appreciably, one would have thought that it is time to shout “uhuru”. However, this was not the case, as we were not in a position to benefit from the high prices as a result of our low oil production capacity. We have consistently been unable to meet up with our OPEC production quota of 1.8 million barrels per day due to persistent vandalisation of oil pipelines and facilities. Coupled with this is the blatant stealing of sometimes over 60 % of crude production. This has meant that our production have hovered around 1.3 million barrels per day, unlike in the past when Nigeria had the capacity to produce up to 2 million or more barrels of oil per day.

    It was recently revealed that on a survey of a 12 km pipeline section, 300 theft points were discovered, this amounts to one theft point every 40 metres. No oil company or indeed nation can survive this rate of theft of it’s resources, outside the huge costs of repeatedly repairing these facilities. This is why Nigeria has not been able to benefit from the current high oil prices, sometimes in excess of $100 per barrel.

    Instead, what we have harvested from this, as a result of theft and disgraceful lack of refining capacity, is imported inflation as we are forced to import refined petroleum products at the high prevailing international prices with the associated high petroleum subsidies. These subsidies could have been invested in other productive sectors of the economy such as agriculture, industries and infrastructure, had it been we were able to fully leverage the benefits of being an oil-producing nation. As it stands now Nigeria sadly, cannot take advantage of the current boom in oil prices.

    The Naira definitely cannot fare better given such dire circumstances.

    • Despite our low dollar earnings we still expend a disproportionate portion of our forex in funding medical tourism, foreign education and other services as a result of the poor state of most of our health and educational institutions. As we speak now, ASUU is still on strike and nobody knows when the issues will be resolved.
    The continuous demand on the limited dollar reserves of the nation will continue to assert pressure on the value of the Naira leading to devaluation.

    The solutions to these problems seem obvious, but yet, have proved intractable over the years. Some of the apparent solutions are:
    • Deploy top notch technology driven security measures to stop the vandalisation of oil production facilities and theft of crude oil.
    • Implement policies to enhance the local production of most consumer goods, including motor vehicles.
    • Improve our health care facilities at all levels in order to reduce the current huge amount of forex expended on medical tourism.
    • Address the persistent issues around our educational sector by improving the quality and standards in our educational system. This will reduce the need for many students to seek admission abroad.
    • Resolve the crises affecting electricity, security and transport infrastructure. All these will help in boosting productivity across agriculture, manufacturing and other economic sectors.

    At this juncture, it is important to note that of all the issues analysed above that have negatively impacted the value of the Naira, non is within the direct purview or supervision of the CBN.

    Despite these obvious facts, the detractors have gone to town heaping all the blame for the present state of the Naira on Godwin Emefiele.
    They have mischievously refused to acknowledge the fact that the present CBN under Emefiele has gone out of it’s way in search of solutions to the numerous problems facing the economy. These efforts have manifested in the diverse and very innovative intervention programmes cutting across agriculture, industries, energy, infrastructure, etc.

    The way and manner Emefiele has managed to combine the traditional duties of the CBN with interventions in the major sectors of the economy are the reasons for our unflinching support for him to contest the presidency of Nigeria in 2023.

    We are staunch believers in his capacity, given the impact he has made in diverse areas of the economy.

    We assert, with all sense of responsibility, that without these critical interventions Nigeria would have been in a more precarious economic situation than we are now.
    Could we imagine if the right investments were not made in agriculture, especially rice, at the time it was made, how would we have been able to finance the rice armada from Thailand given the present situation of our economy?

    Finally, we implore all patriotic Nigerians to judge Emefiele by his concrete achievements as CBN Governor rather than listen to the discordant sounds from the echo chambers of detractors and political mercenaries.

    We strongly believe that Godwin Ifeanyichukwu Emefiele, if given the chance, will replicate his achievements in CBN on the national stage to the benefit and satisfaction of all citizens and residents of Nigeria.

  • Naira depreciation is major problem in budget implementation in Nigeria – NJC

    Naira depreciation is major problem in budget implementation in Nigeria – NJC

    The National Judicial Council (NJC) on Wednesday said the depreciating value of the naira is a major problem in the implementation of the budget in the country.

    Ahmed Saleh Executive Secretary of the Council revealed this to the House of Representatives Committee on Judiciary during the appraisal of the NJC’s 2021 budget, as well as defennce of the 2022 estimates.

    According to Saleh, the exchange rate of naira to dollar as at December 2000 was N380 to one US dollar. But in May this year, the naira has further depreciated to N570 to one US dollar. This has caused a serious challenge in our budget implementation and performance, most especially on projects and services that have foreign exchange components.

    “We have made adequate provisions in this year’s budget to cater for some of these major projects to the point of completion and exiting completely, but due to this depreciation and inflation, we certainly cannot achieve total completion. What this means is that we may have to roll over some of the projects next year and we may also have to make provision to cater for them,” he said.

    While commending the Committee for its efforts in ensuring the appropriation for the NJC in 2022 was reviewed upwards from N110 billion to N120 billion, he assured that the increment would be put to judicious use.

    He said as at October they have been able to access almost 80 percent of the total funds appropriated to the Nigerian judiciary in 2021. He added that performance and implementation was at 73 percent.

    On his part, Chairman House Committee on Judiciary, Hon. Onofiok Luke, called for an intervention fund for the judiciary to enable it meet up its competing demands and challenges.

    He assured that the National Assembly would continue to take legislative action that would lead to better welfare of judicial officers and called for the cooperation and partnership of relevant stakeholders in this regard.

    He also stressed the need for adequate security for judicial workers.

    His words:”There should be better living and working conditions for our judicial officers. There is a need to put in place, technology that would make our courtrooms to be in line with what is obtainable in other climes is making the sum appropriated inadequate.

    “Of great importance to this committee is the security of judicial officers. We have stated as a committee that we should create an enabling environment, not only a working environment, not just good living conditions, but a secured environment for our judicial officials to operate without hindrance, without any fear of intimidation or harassment. That is why we condemn the attack on the Justice of the Supreme Court, Mary Odili. It should not repeat itself because we are weakening the morale and strength of our judicial officers.

    “It is quite disheartening that not only do they have challenges in their workplace, they have challenges even in their pay. So it is the resolve of this committee and the House under the leadership of Rt Hon Femi Gbajabiamila and the entire leadership for us to partner and ensure that there is a review of salaries that would make for better welfare of judicial officers.

    “There other issue is an appeal that we made and part of the thing we have asked for is that let us take justice down to the people. The question now today is not access to justice, the question today is the exit of justice. And so a combination of two would mean that we need to have infrastructure closer to the people. So it would not be out of place for us to seek for the establishment of some other divisions of court in places that they do have like places that don’t have National Industrial Court.

    “Yes, we might say that there are minimal labour law cases in those jurisdictions, but we should not deny few the opportunity of seeking redress when their rights are infringed. A place like the Court of Appeal, the chairman of this committee has in the last two years, requested for a division of the Court of Appeal in Uyo.

    “Uyo deserve it as you see most of the cases in Calabar and then the road if we have a good road network between Calabar and Akwa Ibom, then they would not be having a challenge. So please put it as a consideration. It is not a House for the chairman for the Chairman of the committee but it is a division of the Court of Appeal, Uyo Division. Also we see what we can do with the Ekiti division too to make sure it comes on stream, and other divisions that need to be dealt with”.

  • JUST IN: 3 reasons why Obi Cubana is in EFCC custody

    JUST IN: 3 reasons why Obi Cubana is in EFCC custody

    Gradually, it is becoming clearer why popular socialite and businessman, Obinna Iyiegbu, popularly known as Obi Cubana is under the custody of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

    TheNewsGuru.com (TNG) reports the EFCC as saying it did not arrest the Anambra State born businessman but that he voluntarily came to their office.

    Sources in the EFCC have said Obi Cubana was invited on allegations of money laundering, tax evasion and abuse of the Naira in public places.

    It was, however, not clear where Obi Cubana abused the Naira in public places, but the billionaire in the year threw a massive burial for his late mum during which Naira bills and other hard currencies rend the air.

    TNG reports Obi Cubana arrived at the headquarters of the EFCC at Jabi, Abuja, around noon on Monday, and is still at the commission at the time of filing this report.

    However, the EFCC has said the billionaire would not be held for more than 48 hours.

    “Obi Cubana came to our headquarters on Monday afternoon by himself. We did not arrest him. We extended an invitation to him two weeks ago.

    “As we speak, he is being grilled by detectives over allegations of money laundering, tax evasion and abuse of the Naira.

    “We will not hold him beyond 48 hours,” a source at the EFCC, who asked not to be named, told TNG.

  • How devaluation of Naira started – CBN Governor

    How devaluation of Naira started – CBN Governor

    Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Mr Godwin Emefiele has taken a step back to analyze and narrate how the devaluation of the Naira started, saying the Naira has been on a one-way free fall from parity to the US Dollar in 1984 to over N410/USD today.

    TheNewsGuru.com (TNG) reports Mr Emefiele gave the analysis and narrative in his remarks during the launch of Nigeria’s own Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC), named the eNaira in Abuja on Monday.

    Emefiele also used the occasion of the eNaira launch to dispel fears on the nation’s foreign reserves, saying the reserves are strong and getting stronger by the day.

    ”There have been continuing debate on the true value of the Naira. Rather than worry today on the direction of the exchange rate, let us take a step back and analyze how we got here in the first place.

    ”Please recall that since the advent of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) led Structural Adjustment Programme (SAP) in 1986, and the introduction of the Second Tier Foreign Exchange (SFEM) market, the Naira has been on a one-way free fall from parity to the US Dollar in 1984 to over N410/USD today.

    ”Some 35 years later, we have not been able to achieve the many promises and objectives of that programme.

    ”Instead, what we have seen is widespread import dependency, which has wiped out most of our production and manufacturing bases and exported all our jobs in the process.

    ”What has happened to the massive textile factories across our nation such that we import almost all cotton products when we are rich in cotton?

    ”What has happened to our vehicle assembly plants across the nation such that we import most vehicles and have become a massive dumping ground for dying second-hand vehicles?

    ”What has happened to our rubber plantations through which we made the best tyres and rubber products in the world? What has happened to our groundnut pyramids? What has happened to our Cocoa farms? What has happened to our palm oil mills?

    ”Under your leadership, Mr. President, we must stop this decline for good! We must return to massive homemade production; we must get our people working again. We must create the economic environment for massive domestic production and significant non-oil exports.

    ”As custodians of your national reserves, let me first assure you that there is no cause for alarm. Our FX reserves are strong and indeed getting stronger by the day, crossing the 40 billion USD mark, and is one of the highest in Africa – and growing.

    ”But we cannot fritter our reserves away on cheap imports and currency speculators. We must return to an employment-led growth anchored on productivity and rewarding producers of local goods, services, innovation and new technologies.

    ”If you consume cheap imports and export our jobs, we will make you pay dearly; but if you produce locally – with little or no foreign inputs beyond machinery, we will support you, and the markets will reward you abundantly,” he said.

    Speaking further, Emefiele explained that eNaira is Nigeria’s CBDC and it is the digital equivalent of the physical Naira.

    ”As the tagline simply encapsulates, the eNaira is the same Naira with far more possibilities. The eNaira – like the physical Naira – is a legal tender in Nigeria and a liability of the CBN. The eNaira and Naira will have the same value and will always be exchanged at 1 naira to 1 eNaira,” he said.

    Emefiele added that the CBN has given careful consideration to the entire payments and financial architecture and has designed the eNaira to complement and strengthen these ecosystems and has implemented secure safeguards and policies to maintain the integrity of the financial system.

    He pledged that there would be strict adherence to the anti-money laundering and combating the financing of terrorism (AML/CFT) standards in order to preserve the integrity and stability of Nigeria’s payment system.

    According to Emefiele, since the eNaira platform went live, there has been overwhelming interest and encouraging response from Nigerians and other parties across the world with over 2.5 million daily visits to the website.

    He listed the following milestones:

    ”33 banks are fully integrated and live on the platform, 500 million has been successfully minted by the Bank, N200 million has been issued to financial institutions, over 2,000 customers have been onboarded and over 120 merchants have successfully registered on the eNaira platform”.

    In addition to all policies and actions of the CBN to support the economy especially through the trying times of COVID-19, Emefiele announced a new financial instrument titled “The 100 for 100 PPP – Policy on Production and Productivity”, which will be anchored in the Development Finance Department under his direct supervision.

    He explained that under this policy the CBN would advertise, screen, scrutinize and financially support 100 targeted private sector companies in 100 days, beginning from 01 November 2021, and rolling over every 100 days with new set of 100 companies, whose names will be published in National Dailies for Nigerians to verify and confirm.

    The CBN governor also used the occasion to commend President Buhari for making history, yet again, with the launch of the eNaira – the first in Africa and one of the earliest around the world.

    During the launch, President Muhammadu Buhari explained to Nigerians the basis why he approved for the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to issue Nigeria’s own Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC), named the eNaira.

    Buhari said: ”In recent times, the use of physical cash in conducting business and making payments has been on the decline. This trend has been exacerbated by the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic and the resurgence of a new Digital Economy.

    ”Alongside these developments, businesses, households, and other economic agents have sought for new means of making payments in the new circumstances.

    ”The absence of a swift and effective solution to these requirements, as well as fears that Central Banks’ actions sometimes lead to hyperinflation created the space for non-government entities to establish new forms of “private currencies” that seemed to have gained popularity and acceptance across the world, including here in Nigeria.

    ”In response to these developments, an overwhelming majority of Central Banks across the world have started to consider issuing digital currencies in order to cater for businesses and households seeking faster, safer, easier and cheaper means of payments.

    ”A handful of countries including China, Bahamas, and Cambodia have already issued their own CBDCs.

    ”A 2021 survey of Central Banks around the world by the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) found that almost 90 per cent are actively researching the potential for CBDCs, 60 percent were experimenting with the technology and 14 per cent were deploying pilot projects.

    ”Needless to add, close monitoring and close supervision will be necessary in the early stages of implementation to study the effect of eNaira on the economy as a whole.

    ”It is on the basis of this that the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) sought and received my approval to explore issuing Nigeria’s own Central Bank Digital Currency, named the eNaira”.

    Speaking during the launch of the digital currency, the President said the adoption of the CBDC and its underlying technology, called block chain, can increase Nigeria’s GDP by $29 billion over the next 10 years.

    Buhari also declared that the introduction of the eNaira would enable the government to send direct payments to citizens eligible for specific welfare programmes as well as foster cross border trade.

    He stressed that alongside digital innovations, CBDCs can foster economic growth through better economic activities, increase remittances, improve financial inclusion and make monetary policy more effective.

    ”Let me note that aside from the global trend to create Digital Currencies, we believe that there are Nigeria-specific benefits that cut across different sectors of, and concerns of the economy.

    ”The use of CBDCs can help move many more people and businesses from the informal into the formal sector, thereby increasing the tax base of the country,” he said.

    The President said with the launch of eNaira, Nigeria has become the first country in Africa, and one of the first in the world to introduce a Digital Currency to her citizens.

    He commended the Governor of the Central Bank, Godwin Emefiele, his deputies and the entire team of staff who worked tirelessly to make the launch of Africa’s first digital currency a reality.

    The President, who assured Nigerians of the safety and scalability of the CBDC system, said the journey to create a digital currency for Nigeria began sometime in 2017.

    ”Work intensified over the past several months with several brainstorming exercises, deployment of technical partners and advisers, collaboration with the Ministries of Communication and Digital Economy and its sister agencies like the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), integration of banking software across the country and painstaking tests to ensure the robustness, safety and scalability of the CBDC System, ” he said.

    Equally, the Nigerian leader noted that his approval was also underpinned by the fact that the CBN has been a leading innovator ‘‘in the form of money they produce, and in the payment services they deploy for efficient transactions.’’

    He noted that Nigeria’s apex bank has invested heavily in creating a Payment System that is ranked in the top ten in the world and certainly the best in Africa.

    ”This payment system now provides high‐value and time‐critical payment services to financial institutions, and ultimately serves as the backbone for every electronic payment in Nigeria.

    ”They have also supported several private‐sector initiatives to improve the existing payments landscape, and in turn, have created some of the world’s leading payment service providers today,’’ he said.

  • Naira falls at official market

    Naira falls at official market

    Naira fell marginally against the U.S. dollar at the official market on Thursday, after the currency appreciated for three consecutive sessions on a stretch at the market segment.

    The currency traded with the foreign currency at N415.07 to a dollar, which implies a N1.00 or 0.24 per cent depreciation from the N414.07 rate it exchanged on Wednesday, FMDQ securities exchange data showed.

    Forex turnover at the spot market plummeted by 69.20 per cent with $103.16 million recorded on Thursday as against the $334.97million posted at the close of business in the previous session on Wednesday.

    The local unit staged an intraday high of N405.00 and a low of N424.25 before closing at N415.07 to a dollar on Thursday.

    The currency last closed at the N415.00 and above mark on October 13 when it closed at N415.10 to a dollar.

    At the black market in Abuja, dealers exchanged the naira at the rate of N570.00 and sold at N578.00 to a dollar on Thursday.

    While at Uyo, dealers said they exchanged the currency at N565.00 and sold at N568.00 to a dollar on Thursday

  • Some people can’t be obtaining Dollar for N410 to sell N570; Osinbajo defends exchange rate position, denies calling for devaluation of Naira

    Some people can’t be obtaining Dollar for N410 to sell N570; Osinbajo defends exchange rate position, denies calling for devaluation of Naira

    Vice President Yemi Osinbajo has said that he is not calling for the devaluation of the naira contrary to some reports that trailed his speech at the opening session of the mid-term ministerial performance review retreat at the presidential villa, Abuja on Monday.

    Osinbajo in a statement issued by his spokesman, Laolu Akande, on Tuesday said he rather advocates a forex policy to curb corruption.

    While noting that he has been opposed to the devaluation of the currency, the Vice President said those who have access to the dollars at N410 turn round to sell it were benefiting from the current exchange rate.

    “Prof. Osinbajo is not calling for the devaluation of the Naira. He has at all times argued against a willy-nilly devaluation of the Naira,” the statement read.

    “For context, the Vice President’s point was that currently, the Naira exchange rate benefits only those who are able to obtain the dollar at N410, some of who simply turn round and sell to the parallel market at N570.

    “It is stopping this huge arbitrage of over N160 per dollar that the Vice President was talking about. Such a massive difference discourages doing proper business, when selling the dollar can bring in 40% profit!”

    He also revealed the major issues confronting the Nigerian economy, stressing that how to improve the supply of foreign exchange is the major challenge facing the country’s economy.

    Osinbajo explained that allowing the window of import and export would help improve the value of the naira.

    “The real issue confronting the economy on this matter is how to improve the supply of foreign exchange, but this will not happen if we do not allow mechanisms like the Importers and Exporters window to work. If we allow this market mechanism to work as intended, we will find that the Naira will appreciate against the dollar as we restore confidence in the system,” he added.

  • JUST IN(+Video): CBN declares Oniwinde, owner of AbokifX wanted for ‘manipulating’ Naira exhange rates

    JUST IN(+Video): CBN declares Oniwinde, owner of AbokifX wanted for ‘manipulating’ Naira exhange rates

    The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has declared Oniwinde Adedotun, founder of AbokiFX, wanted.

    AbokiFX is a website that publishes the parallel market exchange rate of the naira against other currencies.

    Godwin Emefiele, CBN governor, while speaking today, September 17, at the end of the 280th Monetary policy meeting (MPC) meeting of the apex bank in Abuja, referred to Oniwinde as an illegal FX dealer.

    Emefiele added that he will be prosecuted for endangering the Nigerian economy.

    Emefiele said: “Mr Oniwinde started the AbokiFX operation in 2015 and has since milked the economy by manipulating the exchange rate.

    “Oniwinde lives in London while concorting criminal activities on our economy. Our preliminary findings shows that the company continues to file the same cash account in the United Kingdom whereas he maintained about 25 accounts with 8 banks in Nigeria, milking the system and collecting cash through Automatic Teller machines in London.

    “He then sell tens of millions in FX to company’s in Nigeria; we will go after them all.”

    Emefiele said, according to the CBN Act, section 2, only the apex bank can determine the value of the naira.

    He promised to ensure that Oniwinde is captured and made to answer to the law.

    The governor added that Oniwinde and his supporters who want to fight him over the declaration should come to his office and show their faces.

    Watch video below.

  • More woes as Nigeria’s Naira nosedives to N570/$1

    More woes as Nigeria’s Naira nosedives to N570/$1

    THE gap between the official and unofficial market exchange rates widened to N157.94 at the close of business on Thursday, as one dollar exchanged for N570.00 due to scarcity of the greenback.

    In the same vein, one British pound exchanged for N770, while one Euro went for N655. Specifically, Naira fell significantly against the U.S dollar at the parallel market on Thursday, falling further from N562 per $1 it exchanged on Wednesday, according to information obtained from AbokiFX.

    This implies an N8.00 or 0.90 devaluation from the N557.00 it traded on Tuesday. Meanwhile, the naira remained stable against the greenback at the official market on Wednesday and Thursday, as foreign exchange turnover remained unchanged from what was posted in the previous session on Tuesday.

    Data recorded on the FMDQ securities exchange window where forex is officially traded, showed that the naira closed at N412.06 per $1 at the official window on the two days. Also, on Wednesday, the forex turnover remained unchanged with $175.10 million recorded at the spot market, the same rate posted in the previous session on Tuesday.

    The domestic currency hit an intraday high of N400.00 and a low of N414.90 at the trading session before closing at N412.06 on Wednesday. Meanwhile, findings show that some individuals and corporate entities are saving their fortunes in dollars as a preferred store of value.

    Some of those who spoke to the Nigerian Tribune said it was safer, convenient and profitable to hoard dollars because of the dwindling fortunes of the naira, especially in the parallel forex market.

    Analysts believed that the rush for the dollar and other factors have further exacerbated the pressure on the naira as checks at the bureau de change (BDC) market in Lagos revealed that the greenback is in high demand.

    The United States dollar was Wednesday purchased by walk-in customers between N565 to N567 to $1.

    The naira has been on a steady decline since the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) stopped the sale of forex to BDCs due to what the apex bank called regulatory infractions by some bureau de change operators.

    The CBN policy has resulted in the scarcity of forex.

    This has forced up the exchange rate and has made it difficult for local manufacturers who depend on imported raw material to source forex with the effect that inflation has been on the rise as manufacturers have to resort to black market.

    The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), in its Consumer Price Index for August released on Wednesday, reported that, “The consumer price index, which measures inflation increased by 17.01 per cent (year-on-year) in August 2021. This is 0.37 per cent points lower than the rate recorded in July 2021 (17.38) per cent.”

    But in its reaction to the report the Financial Derivatives Company (FDC) said though inflation was down a bit in August, it was “still astronomically high”.

    According to the company, “The continued moderation in inflation can be largely attributed to base year effects. This is because the rate of annual inflation in all baskets declined whilst monthly sub-indices increased. The increase in monthly inflation suggests that naira weakness in the forex basket is being transmitted into domestic prices. Most manufacturers claim they are only able to source about 10 per cent of their forex demand from official sources.

    With the autonomous rate at record lows of N562/$, the blended rate has depreciated by 13.5 per cent to N547/$ from N482/$ in June. This means that headline inflation might be approaching a point of inflection, which will translate into higher inflation in September/October.”

  • No redemption! Naira plunges to N562/$ in parallel market amid drop in inflation

    No redemption! Naira plunges to N562/$ in parallel market amid drop in inflation

    Nigeria’s naira further plinged against the dollar in the parallel market, closing at N562/$ on Wednesday against N557/$ at the market opening.

    On the Importers/Exporters window, the country’s currency closed at N410.54.

    The British pound was stable against the naira, closing at N760/£ – the same rate at the start of the market day.

    However, naira weakened against the euro, closing at N648/$ against N645/$ on Wednesday morning.

    Naira has weakened against the dollar by over 40 per cent in the parallel market in the last one year as COVID-19, oil price vagaries, and low dollar supply continue to hurt the economy.

    For an import-dependent economy like Nigeria, the relationship between exchange rate and inflation is direct.

    The reason is that as the local currency weakens, prices of imported goods become more expensive, experts say.

    One of the Bureau De Change operators recently banned by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Aminu Salau said that hoarding of dollars had become commonplace in the parallel market.

    “There is an increased rate of hoarding in the market. Many people are holding their dollars with the hope that prices will rise further in the future,” he said.

    Chairman of Manufacturers Association of Nigeria Export Group Ede Dafinone said in the face of dwindling dollar inflows from oil, Nigeria should increase non-oil export to raise foreign exchange inflows.

    However, amid the weakening local currency, inflation fell in August 2021, dropping from 17.38 per cent in July to 17.01 in August, representing a marginal 0.37 per cent decline.