Electron Native

The Nigerian central bank auctioned treasury bills on Wednesday at higher rates. The transaction was meant to lure foreign investors hours after President Buhari told the bank to ban access to dollars for food imports. The decision is seen as a means of reducing the decline in the nations foreign reserves. The bank auctioned 34.4billion Naira worth of treasury bills, paying 12 percent for the longest tenor one-year paper, up from 11.2 percent it paid at its last sale, on ample demand for the bills, traders said. Pressure has been building on the Naira currency as oil prices drop and foreign investors book profits on local bonds in response to falling yields. Crude sales account for 90percent of foreign exchange earnings and two-thirds of government revenues in Nigeria, Africa’s top oil producer. Banking stocks fell 1.26 percent on Wednesday, to help drag the main share index to a more than two-year low as negative sentime...

The election "war chest" is being pumped with cash and the Naira is already responding to her increased demand as Saturdays Govnorship and State Houses of Assembly Polls looms. And this has led the Naira on Tuesday to gained 50 kobo and exchange at N358 to the dollar at the parallel market in Lagos, stronger than N358.5 traded on Monday. Source : Sahara Reporters The Pound Sterling and the Euro closed at N470 and N408, respectively. At the Bureau De Change (BDC) window, the naira traded at N360 to the dollar, while the Pound Sterling and the Euro closed at N470 and N408, respectively. Trading at the investors segment saw the Naira closing at N360.77 as market turnover stood at 91.66 million dollars