Naira Closes Flat on First Trading Day of 2017

• Naira Closes Flat on First Trading Day

The Nigerian Naira closed flat on the first official trading day of the year.

The local currency closed at N305 to a US dollar at the official window, same as the last working day of 2016.

At the parallel market, the naira closed at N490 against the US dollar, the same rate it closed on Friday, the last official trading day of 2016.

According to a Reuters report, the Central Bank of Nigeria sold $1.5 million to boost market liquidity and prop up the naira value against the dollar after the currency initially traded at N315.50 to the US dollar before gaining N10.50 to trade at N305.

Experts have said “In the week ahead, pressure on the naira will linger, especially at the parallel market, as backlog from the official market continues to stoke imbalances,” United Capital said in a research note on Tuesday.

The local currency had lost about 50 percent of its official value against the US dollar in 2016, plunging the stock market by 6.17 percent over the same period.

The CBN has struggled to support the naira due to lower oil prices and depleted external reserves.