Naira reverses loss after dropping to 500/dollar

The naira dropped against the United States dollar from 498 to 500 at the parallel market during the early trading hours on Monday, crossing the critical threshold currency analysts had predicted.

Foreign exchange traders linked the development to relative scarcity of the greenback in the Forex market.

The local unit, however, reversed the loss during the intra-day trading and closed at 498/dollar.

The naira has been under persistent pressure as scarcity of the greenback continued to hit the market.

At the official market, the local unit closed at 305/dollar. Economic experts and currency analysts are divided over the outlook for the naira this year.