• Seeks Bids For $100m Invisibles

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) on Wednesday, April 12, 2017, released additional $250m on 7 to 30-day forwards for operators in the agriculture, airline, petroleum products and raw materials sectors of the economy.
The CBN also called for bids for wholesale spot for $100m for Basic/Personal Travelling Allowance, medicals and tuition fees.
Acting Director, Corporate Communications at the Central Bank of Nigeria, Isaac Okorafor, who confirmed the development said the CBN has also commenced heavy injections into the spot market in addition to the settlement of requests for wholesale spot bids for invisibles like school fees, medicals and personal travel allowance.
It will be recalled that earlier this week, the apex Bank had disbursed $20,000 each to the Bureau De Change (BDC) operators in two tranches of $10,000 each, which according to Okorafor underscores the commitment of the apex bank to ensure liquidity in the foreign exchange market.
Reacting to the special window for SMEs in the country, Wale Adegbite, Chairman, Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN) in Ogun described the amount as too nominal for them to import goods into the country, urging the CBN to increase the special window five-fold to the sector $100,000 quarterly.
He told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Wednesday in Ota, Ogun, that such a decision would effective help the Small and Medium Enterprises ( SMEs) to import raw materials and boost the economy.
“The SMEs and manufacturers form the bedrock of any nation because they play vital roles in economic development as well as providing jobs for the people,” he added.