The naira on Thursday depreciated by N25 in a single trading session in the black market as renewed demand pressure for dollars returned to the parallel market.

Data obtained from street traders and online foreign exchange monitoring platforms showed that the naira traded between N1,410 and N1,420 across various parallel market hubs nationwide.

At the current rate of N1,420 per dollar, the local currency has weakened by about 1.8 percent compared with N1,395 quoted on Wednesday in the black market. The gap between the official and parallel market rates has also widened slightly to about N8 from N7 recorded on Friday, reflecting renewed pressure in the informal currency market.

In the official foreign exchange market, the naira also recorded a marginal depreciation. The currency weakened by N2.80 as the dollar was quoted at N1,387.09 on Wednesday compared with N1,384.29 on Tuesday at the Nigerian Foreign Exchange Market (NFEM), representing a 0.2 percent decline against the greenback.

The local currency had maintained a steady appreciation trend in recent weeks before the rally began to cool after the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) stepped into the market to mop up excess dollar supply, a move aimed at moderating the pace of the naira’s strengthening.

Market participants said the recent moderation in the exchange rate was largely influenced by the apex bank’s intervention in the market. According to traders, the CBN has been actively buying dollars from the market to slow the pace of appreciation and prevent sharp movements that could trigger speculative trading.

“CBN is the one mopping up the dollar because it was appreciating too fast. They’re buying it from the market,” a trader said, noting that the intervention appeared designed to keep the currency within a manageable range and limit volatility on the upside.

Analysts at the Financial Markets Dealers Association (FMDA) also noted that despite the Central Bank’s late-month foreign exchange purchases aimed at preventing excessive naira strengthening that could distort investor positioning, the currency still recorded gains across both the official NFEM window and the parallel market in February 2026. (BusinessDay)

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