A Financial Expert and the Principal Partner of AG
Fadairo & Co., Mr. Abdul-Ganiyu Dairo, has described the intervention of
the Central bank of Nigeria (CBN) in the interbank forex as a step that would stabilise
prices and revive the nation’s economic growth.
Dairo, who said this
early in the week in Lagos, noted that the CBN’s intervention policy would
enable the apex bank achieve its objectives of boosting liquidity in the forex exchange
market in addition to reducing the gap between the official and parallel
markets’ exchange rates of the naira.
He, however, noted that
for the success of the CBN’s intervention to be felt across board, the CBN must
constantly monitor, charge and review the returns of the sales of foreign
currency expectedly made by the banks and the Bureau De Change (BDC) operators
in order to ensure that they do not sabotage the current arrangement that had
given breather to the naira and that the set terms and conditions are met.
The Chartered
Accountant further stressed that as the apex market had repeatedly explained
that it allowed for flexibility to come into play, the market was not expected
to be fixed, adding that the market would move based on trend and as a sort of
floating market.
Dairo added that the
improved implementation of the CBN’s foreign exchange policy had greatly
influenced the naira’s recent appreciation, urging that the CBN must sustain
its forex intervention until currency convergence was fully achieved.
He also said that with
relative peace in the Niger Delta region and an inflow of foreign currency from
the nation’s continuous production and exportation of crude oil at reasonable
prices at international market, the much expected increase in foreign reserves
would afford the CBN the opportunity to sustain its intervention policy.
The Financial Expert stressed
that the current drop in inflation figure from 18.72 per cent in January to
17.78 per cent in February had a very significant impact on fixed income
securities’ investments in the country as it increased the purchasing power on
the return on the investments, adding that the government must, however,
improve road infrastructure and networks to enhance the supply of farm-products
to the market and also find local alternatives to the imported items in the
country in order to checkmate the trend of inflation.
The Chartered
Accountant also commended the CBN for its plan to clear all unfilled orders
with provision of forex to the manufacturing sector remaining a strong priority
and zero allocation/utilization rules on commercial banks as well as
implementing an effective intervention programme to support the interbank
market to ensure adequate forex liquidity
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