Naira edge up on Thursday as the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) injected $297 million into the Retail Secondary Market Intervention Sales (SMIS) segment of the foreign exchange market, raising the total intervention for the week to the sum of $547 million.
The intervention boosted its rate as it closed at ₦362 to the dollar as against ₦365 at which it opened on Thursday.
Confirming the figures, the CBN spokesman, Mr. Isaac Okorafor, the Acting Director, Corporate Communications Department, disclosed that the bank was resolute in its determination to intervene in the forex market with the aim of uplifting the naira exchange rate, boosting liquidity in the forex market and ensuring timely execution and settlement for eligible transactions.
The CBN spokesman also expressed confidence that the interventions will continue to guarantee stability in the market and ensure availability to individuals and business concerns with genuine demand for forex transactions.
Recall that on Monday, August 28, 2017, the CBN intervened in the inter-bank foreign exchange market with $195 million in three segments of the market. In the wholesale segment of the inter-bank foreign exchange market, it sold $100 million and also uplifted the Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) and invisible segments, with the sum of $50 million and $45 million respectively.
Okorafor, while responding to media enquiries earlier in the week, had hinted that the apex bank would increase liquidity in the market in the coming days, noting that the move by the CBN is necessary to enhance stability in the FX market.