The Naira experienced a breather on Wednesday, October 8 in the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEM) after it appreciated against the US Dollar by 47 Kobo or 0.03 per cent to trade at N1,470.62/$1 compared with the previous day’s N1,471.09/$1.
However, it lost 55 Kobo against the Pound Sterling in the same market segment to close at N1,975.19/£1 compared with Tuesday’s rate of N1,974.64/£1 and depreciated against the Euro by N4.96 to sell for N1,711.51/€1, in contrast to the N1,716.47/€1 it was exchanged a day earlier.
The exchange rate of at GTBank, according to its data, saw the local currency losing N3 against the greenback yesterday to quote at N1,478 compared with Tuesday’s price of N1,475/$1.
In the parallel market, the Nigerian Naira depleted by N5 against the Dollar at midweek to N1,485/$1 compared with the preceding session’s rate of N1,480/$1.
Forex demand pressure has returned to the market evidenced by an imbalance between US Dollar demand and supply in the forex market as inflows into the currency market declined last week.
However, the World Bank provided some positive signals for the domestic currency noting that the country has seen progress in economic growth, revenue mobilisation, and external balances after the removal of fuel subsidy, devaluation of the Naira and tax reforms.
The lender noted that Nigeria’s economy expanded by 3.9 per cent year-on-year in the first half of 2025, up from 3.5 per cent in the same period of 2024, with growth driven by strong performance in services and non-oil industries, alongside improvements in oil production and agriculture.
There was also boosts in the country’s external position and decline in public debt to GDP below the 40 per cent line.
Meanwhile, the digital currency market was mixed on Wednesday amid fresh expectations of interest rate cuts in the US.
Minutes from the September Federal Reserve meeting released on Wednesday showed most officials still anticipate interest rate cuts later this year. Some policymakers, however, argued a cut wasn’t necessary in September, and the majority emphasized upside risks to inflation.
Solana (SOL) gained 3.5 per cent to settle at $227.31, Litecoin (LTC) grew by 2.3 per cent to $119.24, Dogecoin (DOGE) jumped by 1.5 per cent to $0.2495, Cardano (ADA) appreciated by 0.9 per cent to $0.8220, and Bitcoin (BTC) rose by 0.4 per cent to $121,952.86.
On the flip side, Ripple (XRP) declined by 0.6 per cent to $2.83, Binance Coin (BNB) fell by 0.4 per cent to $1,274.47, and Ethereum (ETH) dropped 0.1 per cent to sell at $4,441.58, while the US Dollar Tether (USDT) and the US Dollar Coin (USDC) closed flat at $1.00 each.