Tuesday, 10th August 2021: The exchange rate between the naira and the US dollar closed at N411.50/$1 at the official Investors and Exporters window.
Naira remained stable against the US dollar to close at N411.50/$1 on Monday, which was the same rate that was recorded the previous day.
Also, naira remained stable at the parallel market to close at N510/$1 on Tuesday, August 10, 2021, the same rate that it traded the previous day.
The local currency maintained stability across the forex markets, as the CBN appears determined to reduce the influence of currency traders in the foreign exchange market.
The apex bank seems to be keeping to its earlier promise as it has increased dollar sales to the deposit money banks by over 200%.
Trading at the official I&E window
Naira remained stable against the US dollar at the Investors and Exporters window on Tuesday to close at N411.50/$1, representing the same rate that was recorded on Monday, August 9, 2021.
The opening indicative rate closed at N411.63/$1 on Tuesday, 10th August 2021, representing a 24 kobo drop when compared to the N411.39/$1 that it closed at on Monday, 9th August 2021.
An exchange rate of N412.50 to a dollar was the highest rate recorded during intra-day trading, before it settled at N411.50/$1, while it sold for as low as N400/$1 during intra-day trading.
Meanwhile, forex turnover at the Investors and Exporters (I&E) window dropped by 26.2% on Tuesday, 10th August 2021.
According to data tracked by Nairametrics from the FMDQ, forex turnover declined from $166.06 million recorded on Monday, 9th August 2021 to $122.52 million on Tuesday, August 10, 2021.
Cryptocurrency watch
The world’s most popular and largest cryptocurrency, Bitcoin, was down by 0.66%, trading at $45,574.43 on Tuesday evening, with analysts predicting that the crypto might hit $100,000.
Bitcoin has been up for four weeks straight and is on course for its second monthly advance. Overall, it’s seen its fastest 21-day advance since February, the last time it was in the midst of vaulting toward records.
The cryptocurrency is defying criticism over its toll on the environment and is advancing even as regulators around the world are promising tougher crackdowns. China, for one, has taken a number of steps to clamp down on crypto mining, among other things.
In the U.S, policymakers are focusing on digital assets in a new way, with U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission Chair, Gary Gensler, last week calling the space the Wild West.
Ethereum, was down by 0.13% later on Tuesday evening to trade at $3,140.26 at the time of writing this report.
Crude oil price
Oil prices rebounded from last week’s losses as the market seemed to shrug off fears of Chinese lockdowns, with demand strength across the Atlantic overshadowing Covid-19 related concerns.
Brent crude was up again later on Tuesday evening by 0.11% to trade at $70.71 to a barrel as the market bounced back with demand recovery.
It is assumed that President Biden’s $1 trillion infrastructure bill will boost oil product demand and lift US economic performance in the short-to-mid-term, providing much-needed support for prices.
Also, oil was steady after jumping the most in almost 3 weeks as an industry report pointed to shrinking U.S gasoline and crude inventories.
The American Petroleum Institute (API), on Tuesday, reported a draw in crude oil inventories of 816,000 barrels for the week ending August 6, bringing the total 2021 crude draw so far to nearly 56 million barrels, using API data. Analysts had expected a loss of 1.050 million barrels for the week.
WTI gained more than 3% on Tuesday afternoon leading up to the data release.
The International Energy Agency is set to release its monthly report on Thursday, giving the market an indication of how it sees the demand outlook amid the Covid-19 resurgence.
WTI Crude was up by 0.01% on Tuesday evening to trade at $68.30 per barrel, Natural gas recorded a 0.46% gain in price to trade at $4,108. Bonny Light was up by 3.10% to trade at $69.79 per barrel.
External reserve
Nigeria’s foreign reserve rose marginally by $6 million on Monday, 9th August 2021 to close at $33.568 billion compared to $33.562 billion recorded as of 6th August 2021.
Since the reserve started moving positively, it has gained over $474.1 million in 27 days, despite enduring a significant plunge in the previous months.
Recall that the Central Bank of Nigeria banned the sale of foreign exchange to Bureau De Change (BDC) operators in the country, due to reports of the operators’ illegal trading of the dollar, trading beyond the limit threshold of $5,000 and gradually dollarizing the Nigerian economy, according to the CBN governor.
