Nigeria’s central bank says it is ready to intervene to stabilise the naira amid investor flight from emerging markets.
Nigeria’s central bank says it has put contingency measures in place to stabilise the naira if the currency comes under pressure amid global investor flight from riskier emerging-market assets triggered by the crisis in the Middle East.
Deputy Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Muhammad Sani Abdullahi, disclosed this in an interview in Abuja on Thursday, noting that the apex bank stands ready to support the foreign-exchange market if volatility intensifies.
He said the bank was closely monitoring market developments and prepared to act to prevent excessive fluctuations in the currency.
“The bank is ready to step in and smooth the market as much as possible,” Abdullahi said.
The naira has weakened by about 1.3 per cent against the dollar since the start of the conflict on February 28, reflecting the cautious mood among global investors who have been pulling back from emerging-market assets amid heightened geopolitical uncertainty.
However, compared with other major African currencies, the naira has remained relatively stable.
Data compiled by Bloomberg shows that while the Nigerian currency has recorded a modest decline, the South African rand has dropped by about 5 per cent and the Egyptian pound has fallen by roughly 8.5 per cent over the same period.
Over the past three months, the naira has also been the least volatile among the three currencies, indicating relative resilience despite ongoing global economic pressures.