Fresh foreign exchange (forex) demand pressure saw the Naira depreciate against the United States Dollar in the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEX) on Thursday, April 22, by N5.46 or 0.4 per cent to trade at N1,353.91/$1 compared with the preceding day’s value of N1,348.45/$1.
It was the same outcome for the local currency in the official market after it depreciated against the Pound Sterling by N4.13 to close at N1,825.88/£1, in contrast to the preceding session’s N1,821.75/£1, and against the Euro, it dropped 72 Kobo to finish at N1,582.72/€1 versus N1,582.00/€1.
But the Nigerian Naira appreciated against the US Dollar at the GTBank FX desk by N2 during the session to quote at N1,361/$1 compared with Wednesday’s closing price of N1,361/$1, and at the parallel market, it closed flat at N1,375/$1.
FX Pressure came as data showed that NFEM interbank turnover was N28.117 million, lower than the N66.084 million recorded the previous day.
Concerns over liquidity pressures, policy transparency, and confidence in Nigeria’s FX market continue to grip the market while the country’s foreign reserve declines further, even as the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) recently said that the recent decline in Nigeria’s external reserves should not be a cause for concern.
Global developments also played a significant role, as rising geopolitical tensions boosted demand for the US Dollar, further weakening emerging market currencies, including the Naira.
As for the cryptocurrency market, there was a mixed outcome as traders reacted to rising geopolitical tensions from the Iran war and fresh inflation data from Japan.
Japanese inflation ticked higher in March, stoking expectations that the Bank of Japan may soon signal rate hikes, which could strengthen the yen and unsettle global risk assets.
The Iran conflict has disrupted oil flows through the Strait of Hormuz, raising energy costs and inflation risks worldwide and potentially complicating efforts by the Federal Reserve to cut interest rates.
Ethereum (ETH) declined by 1.8 per cent to $2,316.53, Bitcoin (BTC) lost 0.6 per cent to sell at $77,935.53, Solana (SOL) fell by 0.5 per cent to $85.67, and Binance Coin (BNB) dropped 0.4 per cent to sell for $634.85.
However, Dogecoin (DOGE) appreciated by 1.4 per cent to $0.0976, Ripple (XRP) grew by 0.7 per cent to $1.43, Cardano (ADA) expanded by 0.6 per cent to $0.2493, and TRON (TRX) improved by 0.2 per cent to $0.3279, while the US Dollar Tether (USDT) and the US Dollar Coin (USDC) traded flat at $1.00 each.