Naira drops to N620/$1 at black market as pilgrims prepare to travel

Nigerian currency, Naira on Monday morning plunged to a new all-time low of N620 against the dollar at the unofficial market amid the scarcity of the greenback, traders told Ripples Nigeria.

The local currency, which closed at 608/$ a week earlier, has lost 8.13 percent of its value since the start of the year, when it stood at N565 per dollar at the parallel market.

Traders told Ripples Nigeria that the dollar shortage had worsened on the back of the demand by would-be pilgrims and summer travellers.

A total of 43,008 pilgrims from Nigeria are expected to join others from across the world to perform this year’s Hajj, according to a media report quoting the National Hajj Commission of Nigeria.

The Nigeria Christian Pilgrims Commission (NCPC) said in May 2022 that it expected that at least 10,000 faithful would go on a pilgrimage from Nigeria this year.

Read also: Naira appreciates against dollar, Euro, Pound as FX supply rises

It said the 2022 pilgrimage would begin in Nigeria on May 31 when the faithful would travel to Israel and Jordan.

Meanwhile data from the FMDQ Securities Exchange, shows the exchange rate of the Naira to the Dollar at the market window on Friday closed at N420.12/$1 in contrast to N420.17/$1 it closed on Thursday.

The value of FX trades at the window was $162.98 million, $38.83 million lower than the $201.81 million achieved in the preceding trading day.

But at the interbank window of the market, the Naira depreciated against the British Pound Sterling by N1.96 to trade at N510.02/£1 versus the preceding session’s N508.06/£1 and slid by N1.04 against the Euro to close the day at N437.60/€1 compared with N436.56/€1 of the previous day.

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