The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has resumed dollar sales to the banks that did not get the greenback on Tuesday, sources familiar with the matter told BusinessDay on Thursday.
“The sale is happening right now,” one of the sources said. “The rate is around N1475 per US dollar and it’s between $2 million and $5 million for each bank,” the source said.
The naira weakened to N1503.38 per dollar at the NAFEM on Wednesday, according to data by the FMDQ Securities Exchange, which calculates the rate. Dollar supply declined by as much as 56.58 percent to $117.87 million from $271.50 million.
The CBN resumed dollar sales to banks on Tuesday after a five-month break in its latest attempt to boost liquidity in the official market and stabilise the embattled naira.
The apex bank sold just under $90 million on the day at N1490 per dollar, with more than half of the 34 banks that bid securing between $2 and $5 million.
The latest interventions by the CBN, however, pale in comparison to the average of $25 million it sold daily in the market last year.
