Forex market: CBN provides $317.52m, CNY58.40m for agric, raw materials

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), on Friday, provided 317.52 million dollars and 58.40 million Chinese Yuan (CNY) to customers seeking foreign exchange in the agricultural and raw material sector.
CBN Director, Corporate Communications, Mr Isaac Okorafor, said the sale in the Chinese Yuan was done through a combination of Spot and Short-tenored Forwards.
He said the Chinese Yuan was made available only to customers with Renminbi denominated Letters of Credit for agriculture as well as raw materials and machinery.
Okorafor said the availability of Renminbi would eventually ease pressure on the Nigerian foreign exchange market.
He said Friday’s sale would also ease trade transactions between Nigeria and China and maintain financial market stability in the country.
The CBN spokesman said the apex bank remained committed to ensuring that all sectors continued to enjoy access to foreign exchange required for business, whether in U.S dollars or Chinese Yuan.
It will be recalled that the CBN had on Tuesday, intervened in the inter-bank Foreign Exchange Market to the tune of 210 million dollars, therefore Friday’s intervention was the second in the week.
Meanwhile, a dollar exchanged for N361 at the Bureau de Change (BDC) segment of the foreign exchange market, while CNY 1 exchanged for N53 in Abuja.