The naira weakened against the U.S. dollar on Tuesday in the parallel market, following the Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) decision to maintain the country’s benchmark interest rate.
According to Bureau de Change operator Abubakar Alhasan, who operates in Abuja’s Wuse Zone 4, the naira traded at ₦1,628 per dollar on Tuesday, compared to ₦1,617 on Monday — a depreciation of ₦11 in just 24 hours.
However, the official exchange rate saw a slight improvement. The naira closed at ₦1,598.68 per dollar at the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEM), up marginally from ₦1,598.72 on Monday — a gain of 0.04 percent.
The market reactions followed the outcome of the Central Bank’s 300th Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meeting, where the committee opted to retain the Monetary Policy Rate (MPR) at 27.5 percent. The decision was guided by signs of a moderating inflation trend, with Nigeria’s headline inflation easing to 24.23 percent in April 2025.
Speaking at a post-meeting briefing, CBN Governor Olayemi Cardoso expressed optimism about the state of the naira. He noted that the currency has shown increased competitiveness in recent months, despite persistent volatility.
“The naira has become more competitive over the past few months, and we expect continued stability as our policies take effect,” Cardoso said.
The divergence between the official and parallel market rates continues to reflect pressure in the foreign exchange system, even as the CBN works to stabilise the currency and curb inflation.
