The Naira to Dollar exchange rate remained under pressure as of Wednesday, September 14, 2022, amid Nigeria’s persistent foreign exchange scarcity.
The Nigerian Naira exchanged at N707 to a United States Dollar on the black market, a N2 decline from N705 it traded on Tuesday.
At the Investors & Exporters (I&E) forex window, the Naira opened at N434.75 against the United States Dollar on Tuesday before shedding 0.11% to N436.04. Currency traders at the window (I&E) traded $83.71 million worth of currency on Tuesday.
At the Central Bank of Nigeria‘s (CBN) managed interbank forex section, the Naira was sold at N428.81 to a U.S Dollar on Tuesday. The Pounds Sterling – Naira exchange rate was N502.9512 while the Euro traded at N436.4857.
Crude Oil
Oil prices traded lower on Wednesday as uncertainty surrounding interest rates continues to dictate demands for the commodity.
The brent crude oil, against which Nigerian oil is priced, dipped to $92.83 a barrel while the U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude oil shed 0.37% to $86.99 a barrel.
On Tuesday, U.S. data showed the inflation rate rose to 8.3% in the month of August, a strong indication that inflation pressures remain stubborn in the world’s largest economy. This coupled with European Central Bank’s comments that it will continue to raise interest rates to curb rising prices weighed on oil prices on Wednesday.
Energy investors have started lowering the outlook projections, saying rising prices would impact demand for the commodity as global economic growth slowdown.
Cryptocurrency
Like every other asset, cryptocurrency extended its decline on Wednesday ahead of Ethereum merge and transition from Proof of Work to Proof of Stake.
Bitcoin, the world’s most dominant cryptocurrency lost 3.25% to N14.65 million, or $20,250.25 per coin. While Eth, the token of the Ethereum protocol appreciated by 0.41% to N1.131 million or $1,597 a coin.
Earlier this week, cryptocurrency appreciated across the board. However, the reports that there is an arrest warrant against Do Kwon, the co-founder of the now defunct stablecoin issuer Terraform Labs, from the financial crimes unit of the Supreme Prosecutors’ Office of South Korea weighed on the cryptocurrency outlook.
