Data from the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, showed that the
reserves stood at $34.66 billion on June 14, down by $438 million or 1.5 per
cent from $35.094 billion on May 30.
Consequently, the reserves had recorded a year-to-date
decline of 6.5 per cent or $2.43 billion from $37.08 billion on December 31st,
2022.
Meanwhile, the naira on Friday appreciated by 5.7 per cent
to N663.04 per dollar in the Investors & Exporters, I&E window,
regaining some of the losses it suffered on Wednesday and Thursday.
The naira had depreciated on Wednesday by 40.8 per cent to
N664.01 per dollar following new forex market measures announced by the CBN
including elimination of multiple exchange rates and the re-introduction of
willing buyer, willing seller model for exchange rate determination in the
I&E window.
The downward trend continued on Thursday with further
depreciation by 5.7 per cent to N702.19 per dollar.
Meanwhile analysts at Cowry Assets Management Limited and
FBNQuest Securities Limited have projected that the forex market will remain
volatile in the coming weeks.
Analysts at Cowry Assets said: “In our opinion, we expect to
see the foreign exchange market remain volatile in the near term as we begin to
see market participants position themselves to determine the fair exchange
price levels and, in the medium to long term, ascertain the true value of the
naira against the dollar in the market.
Analysts at FBNQuest also said: “Looking ahead, the forex
market is expected to remain highly volatile in the near term as market
participants actively seek to determine price levels.”
They however noted that the new CBN measures could help
reduce the downward pressure on the external reserves.