The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has marginally increased Customs exchange rates for duty clearance.
The apex bank raised the rate from N1,532 to N1,533.067 as of Tuesday, December 17, 2024.
The new rate means importers clearing cargo from Nigeria’s air and seaports will pay N1 higher, as information from the Customs trade portal shows.
This development follows the slight depreciation of the Nigerian naira in the Nigerian Foreign Exchange Market (NFEM).
The naira depreciated slightly from N1,533.56 to N1,533.26, making the FX rates almost equal to the Customs duty rate.
Meanwhile, data from the FMDQ Exchange shows that the naira depreciated to N1,545.10 per dollar on Monday, December 16, 2024, relative to N1,533 recorded the previous trading day.
However, the naira rose in the parallel market to trade at N1,660 from N1,662 on Monday, December 16, 2024.
The information shows that the naira has been rising recently, aided by the CBN’s newly introduced Electronic Foreign Exchange Matching system.
The new platform has boosted transparency in the electronic foreign exchange market (EFEMS) and helped the naira find value.
Over the last two weeks, the Nigerian currency has gained over N147 against the US dollar as buyers and sellers match prices in real-time in EFEMS.
Analysts said that if the transparency in the EFEMS continues, the naira could trade at N1,400 per dollar in the coming year.
Janet Ogochukwu, senior banker and economist, disclosed that EFEMS has proven to be a game-changer in the FX market because it allows traders to see the actual value of the naira.
TimesNow.com.ng also reported that the naira’s value improved in the official and parallel markets on December 12, 2024.
CBN data showed the naira rose 0.85%, gaining N13 in the EFEMS, marking an increase from the previous day.
Proofread by Kola Muhammed, journalist and copyeditor at TimesNow.com.ng
Source: TimesNow.com.ng
