The drastic slide of the naira continues unchecked yesterday as the dollar now goes for N380, euro is exchanged at N395 and the British pound for N 505.
However, the hard currencies remained firm at the official market. A dollar was N199, pound sterling – N285 and euro – N222.
The economic and fiscal policies of the present administration seems not to have a panacea for the malaise bedeviling the country occasioned by the dwindling crude oil price. The Nigerian economy is import dependent, prices of everything including that tooth-pick has skyrocketed.
Last month, the CBN banned dollar sales to the BDC operators, sending the naira to a record low at the black market, and later stopped the daily sale to the interbank market, in an effort to conserve the external reserves, now at their lowest in more than 11 years. The nation realises around 90 per cent of its foreign exchange earnings from crude oil exports. The foreign reserves have fallen to $27.83bn as of February 12, data from the CBN website showed.
The rational against devaluation of the naira might be sensible since we don’t export much and practically import everything but something must be done urgently to stem the slide of the naira.
