Naira weakens against dollar

Naira bundles

The Naira on Monday weakened slightly against the dollar at the parallel market.

The Nigerian currency shed 1 point to trade at N353 by midday, from N352 it traded on Friday.

However, the Naira hedged against the Pound Sterling and the Euro as it traded for N460 and N383, from N465 and N385 it traded respectively on Friday.

At the interbank window, however, the currency closed on a positive note as it exchanged at N282.6 to a dollar.

Traders at the market said that activities at the market were slow because of the prolonged public holiday in the previous week.

Meanwhile, some financial experts have called on the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to open a small window of transaction for Bureau de Change (BDC) operators in the new forex regime.

Mr Femi Ekundayo, former President, Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria (CIBN), urged the apex bank to collaborate with the BDCs in its effort to reposition the forex market.

Mr Harrison Owoh, a BDC operator, who said that BDCs were critical in stabilising the foreign exchange market, called on the CBN to integrate BDCs in the new forex policy.

Meanwhile, the Association of Bureau De Change Operators of Nigeria (ABCON) has been interacting with the apex bank on a new model of partnership in bringing sanity to the forex market.