By Francis Ogwo
Outflow of foreign exchange through autonomous sources especially for imports and invisibles rose by 146.15 percent to US$0.32 billion in May 2020.
This is according to a release by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) in its economic report for the month of May public on Tuesday.
The outflow is higher compared to the level of US$0.13 billion in April 2020 owing to the partial ease in lockdown restrictions.
There was however, a decrease in aggregate foreign exchange outflows from the economy by 23.9 per cent to US$2.50 billion in May. Outflows through the CBN, decreased by 30.9 per cent to US$2.19 billion below the level in the preceding month.
With inflow of US$5.55 billion and outflow of US$2.50 billion, the economy registered a net inflow of US$3.02 billion in May 2020, compared with the net inflow of US$6.43 billion in the preceding month.
There was also a drop in foreign exchange inflows into the economy by 43.2 per cent in May 2020. Inflows through the CBN and autonomous sources were negatively impacted. On a month-on-month basis, foreign exchange flows into the economy declined to US$5.52 billion in May 2020.
The decline in inflow, relative to the level in April 2020, was attributed to the lower receipts from oil sources, which fell sharply by 55.2 per cent because of the continued fragility in global crude oil demand. Inflow through autonomous sources, particularly invisible purchases, declined by 7.0 per cent to US$3.51 billion, relative to the preceding month, while there was a 66.2 per cent fall in inflow through the CBN, which stood at US$2.01 billion in May 2020.
Foreign exchange supply to authorised dealers increased by 18.8 per cent to US$1.00 billion in May 2020 from US$0.84 billion in April 2020, due to rising demand as factories and businesses begin to reopen. Foreign exchange sales at the I&E window increased by 68.4 per cent to US$0.28 billion, relative to the preceding month’s level of US$0.16 billion.
However, interbank sales declined by 10.0 per cent to US$0.055 billion, below the US$0.062 billion sales in April 2020. In May 2020, sales to BDCs remained suspended, as international travels were yet to re-start.
The average turnover at the I&E window fell by 4.9 per cent from $0.043 billion in April to $0.041 billion in May 2020; a decrease of 78.8 per cent below the level in May 2019. During the month under review, the average exchange rate of the naira at the Interbank segment of the foreign exchange market remained unchanged at N361.00/US$, relative to April, 2020. It, however, depreciated by 15.0 per cent, compared with the corresponding month of 2019.
The rate at the I&E window, at N386.25/US$, depreciated by 0.3 per cent and 6.6 per cent relative to N384.99/US$ in April 2020 and N360.70/US$ in May 2019, respectively.
Similarly, at N443.33/US$, the naira depreciated by 5.2 per cent and 18.9 per cent at the BDC segment, relative to N420.15/US$ in the preceding month and N359.75/US$ in May 2019. Consequently, the interbank/BDC premium widened from 16.4 per cent in the preceding month to 22.8 per cent in May 2020.
The resultant figures and outcomes are as a result of the sustained demand pressure on the foreign exchange market even as the premium between the BDC/I&E also widened to 14.8 per cent from 9.1 per cent in the month before.
