Naira inches up against dollar

The Naira on Thursday marginally appreciated against the dollar at the parallel market, the News Agency of Nigeria reports.
The Nigerian currency gained three points to exchange at N462 to a dollar, after it closed at N465 on Wednesday, while the Pound Sterling and the Euro closed at N550 and N477 respectively.
At the Bureau De Change window, the Naira was sold at N399 to a dollar, the Central Bank of Nigeria=controlled rate, while the Pound Sterling and the Euro closed at N550 and N500, respectively.
The Naira exchanged at N305.80 at the interbank market.
Currency traders expressed optimism that liquidity boost in the market would help to shore up the Naira rate.
However, an economist, Harrison Owoh, has attributed the instability in the exchange rate in spite of liquidity boost in the FOREX market to excessive demand for dollars.
Owoh said the injection of $1.14 billion by the Central Bank of Nigeria to the interbank market were majorly at the service of letters of credits and invisibles.
According to him, it is the cash at hand that brings down the exchange rate, not mere letters of credit.
He explained that China, which is the seat of importation business, was on holiday for a full month, adding that the vacation slowed down importation activities by Nigerian importers.
The economist said that since the resumption in importation, the demand for FOREX had outstripped its supply.
NAN.