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Naira opens trading with marginal decline

By BusinessNews Staff on January 7, 2015

The naira depreciated against the dollar by 1.9 per cent to close at N185 at the interbank forex market on Monday, which was the first trading session of 2015.

Also, trading at the Retail Dutch Auction System (RDAS), which is the official arm of the forex market resumed yesterday. The total amount offered by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) was yet to be disclosed.

The naira had closed 2014 as the third worst performing currency in Africa in 2014 against a basket of fairly liquid currencies.
President Goodluck Jonathan had while delivering his New Year message, said that the federal government would this year continue to ensure stability in the value of the naira by striving to take away speculative behaviours that cause market exchange pressures.

Analysts at the Financial Derivatives Company Limited (FDC) predicted at the weekend that Nigeria’ currency would fall to N200 to a dollar at the parallel market this year.
Oil prices fell by over 50 per cent last year.
“Our findings reveal that the Nigerian macroeconomic environment will continue to be vulnerable to exogenous shocks in 2015.

“This is mainly because oil prices and international capital flows will continue to be dominant features in the Nigerian macroeconomic equation.
“Will the Naira Cross N200/$? Yes. The parallel market rate is expected to cross N200/$ as dollar demand pressure persists,” the Lagos-based research and financial advisory firm stated.

Provisional data had indicated that foreign exchange inflow through the CBN in the third quarter of 2014 amounted to $13.09 billion, representing an increase of 3.4 and 10.4 per cent above the levels in the preceding quarter and the corresponding quarter of 2013, respectively. The development then, was largely due to increase in the non-oil component driven mainly by increases in swaps transactions and inflows through other official receipts, respectively.
On the other hand, foreign exchange outflow amounted to $11.80 billion, showing a decline of 7.8 and 6.8 per cent below the levels in the preceding quarter and the corresponding quarter of 2013, respectively.

Meanwhile, data from the FMDQ OTC market showed that while the overnight tenor of the Nigerian Interbank Offered Rates (NIBOR) climbed to 11.20 per cent yesterday, from the 10.96 per cent it stood last Wednesday, the 1-month tenor fell to 14.12 per cent, from 14.52 per cent. Also, the 3-month tenor reduced to 14.86 per cent yesterday, from 15.24 per cent, while the 6-month fund also dropped to 15.61 per cent, from the previous day close of 15.93 per cent.
On the other hand, Nigerian Interbank Treasury Bills True Yield (NITTY), the 1-month yield closed at 12.98 per cent, the 2-month yield at 13.14 per cent, the 6-month yield at 13.84 per cent, the 9-month yield at 13.87 per cent and the 12-month at 15.86 per cent.

[ThisDay]

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