The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has carried out an upward review of the exchange rate for the clearance of goods from N1444.56/$ to N1515.09/$.
The new rate shows an increase of N70.53 compared to the previous rate.
Checks on the federal government’s single-window trade portal of the customs service showed that the new exchange rate of N1515.09 had been effected.
Over the last two weeks, the CBN has adjusted the rate three times from N951.94/$ to N1356.88/$ representing an increase of 42.7 per cent on February 2nd, before this current increase.
The Nigeria Customs Service imposes duties on imported cargoes before clearance from the ports. These charges range from 5% to 35% depending on the harmonized commodity and coding system (HS code).
The naira had crossed the N1500 mark this month, marking a record depreciation despite the increase in transactions.
In a recent appearance before the senate, Governor of the Central Bank, Yemi Cardoso stated that the volume of transactions on the FX market has crossed $1 billion – the first time in years.
He opined that the increase in the volume of transactions is due to the series of reforms embarked on by the apex bank. Some of these reforms include the discontinuance of the CBN development finance program, removing the cap on the spread of interbank transactions and many others. He noted that the bank’s policies are geared to discourage arbitrage, and increase inflow, especially from the diaspora.