ABUJA - The Nigerian currency, the Naira, has shown signs of strength in the parallel market, appreciating to N1,130 per USD from the close on Friday. This improvement was also reflected in the official figures on Monday, where the Naira appreciated to N750.15 per USD.
The upward trajectory of the Naira comes despite a surge in inflation recorded in October. In a more detailed view of the foreign exchange market dynamics, there was a notable discrepancy between the official and parallel market rates. On Monday, while the Naira strengthened in the parallel market to N1,135 per USD, it depreciated within the Nigerian Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEM) to N841.14 per USD. However, the Investors' & Exporters' (I&E) window saw an exchange rate improvement with the naira appreciating by N41.61 reaching an exchange value of N750.14 per USD from last week's rate of N791.75 per USD.
This divergence between market rates has widened the exchange rate gap to a significant figure of N384.86 per USD disparity. Despite this gap, activities within the official market (NAFEM) last week were robust with an 86% increase in dollar turnover, amounting to $725.74 million compared to $389.5 million traded in the preceding week.
Looking ahead, anticipation builds as Dr. Olayemi Cardoso, CBN Governor, is expected to unveil Nigeria's economic roadmap on November 25th at a key banking sector event. Market participants and observers are keenly awaiting this presentation for insights into Nigeria's economic strategies amidst fluctuating currency valuations and inflationary pressures.
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