Naira extended losses against the U.S. dollar at the parallel market on Thursday as the currency exchanged hands with the greenback at N530 per $1.

This translates to a N2.00 or 0.40 per cent devaluation from N528.00 rate recorded in the previous session on Wednesday.

Similarly, the naira weakened further against the U.S. dollar at the official market as foreign exchange supply plummeted significantly.

Data posted on the FMDQ Security Exchange where forex is officially traded showed that the naira closed at N411.67 per $1 at the official market on Thursday.

The domestic currency’s performance on Thursday implies a N0.17 or 0.04 per cent devaluation from the N411.50 rate it traded in the previous session on Wednesday.

Naira hit an intraday high of N400.00 and a low of N413.00 at the trading session before closing at N411.67 on Thursday.

The official window experienced a decrease in foreign exchange turnover by 39.10 per cent, with $296.34 million recorded as against the $486.31 million posted in the previous session on Wednesday.

The spread between the parallel and official markets rates was N118.33 as of the close of business on Thursday, leaving a disparity of 22.33 per cent.

PT