The Naira Depreciated by 0.12% Against the US Dollar at the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEX) on Monday, April 28

The Naira experienced a minor depreciation of 0.12 per cent or N1.96 against the US Dollar at the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEX), shifting from Friday’s rate of N1,599.42/$1 to Monday’s closing price of N1,601.38/$1.

Similarly, the local currency depreciated against the Pound Sterling in the official market by N56.21, concluding the session at N2,186.65/£1 compared to Friday’s rate of N2,130.44/£1. Furthermore, the Naira lost Kobo 29 on the Euro, closing at N1,818.82/€1 versus Friday’s trading day rate of N1,818.53/€1.

In the same vein, the domestic currency weakened against the Dollar in the black market yesterday by N5 to quote at N1,610/$1 compared with the preceding session’s value of N1,605/$1.

Market analysts have been highlighting the continued secondary effect of a trade war between the US and China on Nigeria and other nations’ economies.

For Nigeria, which is heavily dependent on crude oil for FX earnings, the impact of the beef between the two biggest economies is affecting prices, leading to weaker forex.

This is happening despite constant promise by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to continue propping up the local currency.

As for the cryptocurrency market, it was mixed on Monday amid signals from weak economic data just as rising tensions between India and Pakistan added to worries.

Amid macroeconomic uncertainty caused by the US-China trade tensions, the Dallas Fed Manufacturing Index, a typically little-noticed economic data point, plunged to -35.8 from -16.3 last month — making it the worst performance since COVID upended the world economy.

Hostilities between India and Pakistan might also have added to market jitters, with Pakistani Defense Minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif claiming that an Indian military incursion into Pakistan was imminent.

According to reports, last week 26 people were killed in a terrorist attack in Pahalgam, a popular tourist destination in Indian-controlled Kashmir. The two countries have exchanged fire since.

Among the cryptocurrency price movements, Ethereum (ETH) experienced a slight increase of 0.6 per cent, closing at $1,815.97. Binance Coin (BNB) also rose, incrementing by 0.5 per cent to reach $609.82. Bitcoin (BTC) experienced a minimal gain of 0.1 per cent, finishing the session at $94,626.01. The US Dollar Tether (USDT) and the US Dollar Coin (USDC) remained flat, both closing at $1.00.

In contrast, Solana (SOL) experienced a decrease of 0.9 per cent, concluding the day’s trading at $147.90. Cardano (ADA) experienced a decline of 1.0 per cent, closing at $0.7102. Dogecoin (DOGE) underwent a reduction of 0.9 per cent, finishing at $0.1792. Litecoin (LTC) experienced a smaller decrease of 0.5 per cent, closing at $86.55. Finally, Ripple (XRP) showed a minor decline of 0.3 per cent, concluding the session at $2.28.