The Naira traded at N158.35 to the dollar | By Eki Toju
The Nigeria National Petroleum Company’s (NNPC) sale of $450 million to lenders on Thursday raised the naira by 1.1 percent to a more than 2-week high on the interbank market. The surge boosted dollar liquidity in a tight naira market.
The naira was trading at N158.35 to the dollar at 1024 GMT, firmer than the 160.10 to the dollar it closed at on Wednesday.
Dealers said a recent measure by the Central Bank to tighten liquidity has led to a shortage of Naira cash to buy dollars. It also drove yields on the benchmark 3-year bond up to 16.45 percent, from 15.23 percent on Wednesday.
Earlier in the week, the naira depreciated against the dollar, following a high demand for foreign currency by Nigerians preparing to travel to Saudi Arabia on pilgrimage.
