Yemisi Izuora
The President, Association of Bureau De Change Operators of Nigeria (ABCON), Alhaji Aminu Gwadabe, has described prediction that the naira would fall to N415 to the dollar by the end of the year as speculative and act of sabotage.
A new report by Pricewaterhouse Coopers (PwC) predicted that the Nigerian currency may suffer a drop in value between the range of N390 to N415 to a dollar by 2019. The PwC in its Economic Outlook for 2019 predicted the fall on unpredictable change in the oil market which may crash the value of naira to dollar at the foreign exchange floor.
Gwadabe said, “It is pundit juxtaposed analysis; it is unbelievable, speculative and an act of western sabotage.
“It is true our economy is dependent largely on proceeds of oil, which is subjected to the whims and caprices of the capitalist dictates.”
The ABCON chief noted that the present pillars, built so far in the economy would be able to absorb any shocks the oil price volatility would trigger.
“The level of our diversification in terms of rice production, refineries, 42 items ban list, fiscal discipline and stronger macro economic policies of the CBN, will continue to provide cushion to any anticipated oil price volatility,” Gwadabe said.
He said that the increasing levels of investors’ confidence, high inflows and a huge Diaspora remittance, would stand as a buffer for the naira.
The financial expert said, “High tax revenue of the FIRS is cogent attributes for our navigation to an economic destination paradise.”
The PwC 2019 Economic Outlook predicted that the foreign exchange market was expected to remain stable in early 2019, but volatility in the oil market may cause depreciation that could range from about N390 to about N415 to the dollar.
The report noted that in a bid to sustain its policy of exchange rate stability, amidst sustained demand pressures, the CBN increased dollar injections into the foreign exchange market by 87 per cent, to 40 billion in 2018.
The report stated that Nigerians in Diaspora sent an estimate of $25 billion dollars in 2018, representing 6.1 per cent of GDP.