The naira strengthened against the British pound at the official foreign exchange market, appreciating to N1,786.13 per pound from N1,792.52 recorded in the previous session.
The latest movement represents a N5.70 gain for the naira against sterling, amid improving conditions in Nigeria’s foreign exchange market.
The naira’s appreciation also came as the currency maintained relative stability against major currencies, with the domestic FX market increasingly influenced by market-based price discovery and liquidity conditions.
Against the US dollar, the naira traded at N1,326.30/$1 at the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEM), compared with N1,326.52/$1 in the previous session.
FX turnover, however, moderated during the session, falling by about 35.8 per cent to $95.61 million from $148.85 million recorded previously.
The movement in the pound-naira rate also coincided with weakness in sterling against the US dollar, with the British currency trading around $1.3465 after falling to a five-week low.
Market attention remained focused on UK economic data and expectations surrounding the Bank of England’s monetary policy decision, factors that could influence sterling’s performance in the international market.
For Nigeria, the direction of the naira will continue to depend largely on foreign exchange liquidity, crude oil proceeds, remittances and other autonomous inflows, alongside developments in the CBN’s market-based FX framework.
