CBN devalues naira to N380.20 to a dollar
- The naira has gone through another phase of devaluation
- The Nigerian currency is now N380.20 to a dollar
- The devaluation effected by the CBN, took place on Friday, March 20
The Nigerian currency, naira, has been devalued by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) from N380.20 to a dollar as opposed to N366.7 which it stood at in relation to one dollar as at Thursday, March 19.
According to This Day, the devaluation of naira took place on the Investors and Exporters’ (I&E) window.
According to data from Bloomberg terminal, there was very low appetite for the CBN open market operations (OMO) instruments which were available on Thursday.
This indicated that foreign investors have adopted a cautious approach to the devastating effect of the global pandemic, coronavirus.
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The Bloomberg terminal advised investors: “Dear all, kindly be informed that the CBN has moved the rate of FX sales to FPIs from N366.70 to N380.20/$. We will advise as developments unfold.”
Meanwhile, Legit.ng reported that all deposit money banks in Nigeria had been urged to restructure loan terms and tenors to households and businesses affected by the coronavirus outbreak.
The CBN gave the directive when Godwin Emefiele addressed journalists in Abuja. The CBN governor said the interest rate of its intervention programmes has been cut to 5% from 9%.
“The CBN hereby grants all deposit money banks leave to consider temporary and time-limited restructuring of the tenor and loan terms for businesses and households most affected by the outbreak of Covid-19 particularly oil & gas, agriculture, and manufacturing.
“The CBN would work closely with DMBs to ensure that the use of this forbearance is targeted, transparent and temporary, whilst maintaining individual DMB’s financial strength and overall financial stability of the system,” he said.
Legit.ng had reported that the Nigerian economy may be facing another critical episode following the drastic fall of the oil price in the international market to as low as $35 per barrel.
The unfortunate situation led to panic among the country's Bureau De Change (BDC) operators, a development which eventually led to the naira being exchanged for N405 and N420 to a dollar on Thursday, March 12.
Speaking on the development, Aminu Gwadabe who is the president of the Association of Bureaux De Change Operators of Nigeria, said the fall in the oil price raised speculations among the BDC operators and Nigerians in general, leading to the crash in the value of the naira.
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Source: Legit.ng
