The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), on behalf of the Federal Government, has again increased the exchange rate for cargo clearance to N1,605 per Dollar.
Truetells Nigeria understands that this adjustment follows recent fluctuations, with the rate initially rising to N1,515/$, then dropping to N1,472/$.
Since January, there have been several adjustments in the exchange rate, starting from N952/$ in December, then moving to N1,356/$, followed by N1,413/$, and eventually reaching N1,444/$ before hitting the current rate of N1,605/$.
According to The PUNCH, checks on the portal of the Nigeria Customs Service on Wednesday morning showed that the new rate was reflected on the portal.
Barely a month ago, the Federal Government, through the CBN, elevated the exchange rate for cargo clearance from N952 per dollar to N1.356 per dollar.
This adjustment follows weeks after the rate was raised from N783 per dollar to N952 per dollar.
Recall Truetells Nigeria reported that in November 2023, the exchange rate for cargo clearance was increased from N757 per dollar to N783 per dollar, marking a 3.4 per cent rise.
Subsequently, in December, it was further raised from N783 per dollar to N952 per dollar.
The updated rate in the subsequent month has been implemented on the Nigeria Customs Service portal.
In response to the development at the time, a member of the Association of Nigerian Licensed Customs Agents, Remilekun Sikiru, expressed his views during a conversation with journalists saying: “How do we explain this? From N952/$ to N1.4/$ as of Friday morning with about N404 increase? It’s quite unfortunate that the prices of goods and commodities will automatically increase. Importation would further decrease and depreciate, vehicle prices would skyrocket again.
Since this unification of a thing, the government has refused to look inward and critically into the maritime industry regarding importation and exportation. The sector has been neglected, and things are getting worse daily. The question now is, how would freight forwarders and customs brokers agents cope with this new rate?”
