CBN injects $195m into Forex market ahead MPC decisions

Ahead of decisions of the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) today, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) yesterday boosted liquidity in various segments of the inter-bank foreign exchange market with $195 million.

At Monday’s Forex trading, the CBN offered the sum of $100,000,000 as wholesale interventions and allocated the sum of $50,000,000 to the Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) forex window, the bank said in a statement.

The invisibles segment comprising Business/ Personal Travel Allowances, tuition and medical fees, among others, received $45,000,000, it explained.

Confirming the figures, the Bank’s Acting Director in charge of Corporate Communications, Mr Isaac Okorafor, said the bank continued to intervene in the inter-bank sector in order to ensure adequate liquidity in the market.

According to him, the CBN was pleased with the performance of the Naira against other major currencies around the world, particularly now that the forex rates at both the inter-bank and BDC segments neared convergence.

Okorafor expressed optimism that the bank’s intervention had put a check on the activities of speculators, just as he underscored the determination of the CBN in sustaining stability in the forex market, through thorough monitoring of authorised dealers in order to reduce incidences of sharp practices.

Meanwhile, the Naira maintained its steady rate against major currencies around the globe, exchanging for N363/$1 in the BDC segment of the market yesterday.