The local currency, which had been on a steady recovery from 391 to 300, reversed its three days’ gain after dollar scarcity resurfaced on the forex market.
Forex dealers said currency speculators took advantage of recent gains recorded by the naira to mop up dollars, creating fresh scarcity.
However, going by the naira’s fall against the dollar on Thursday, it is uncertain if the CBN’s efforts would make speculators to burn their fingers again.
The CBN Governor, Godwin Emefiele, had accused speculators of conniving with the Bureau De Change operators to undermine the efforts of the central bank to prop up the naira.
He warned that such speculators would eventually be punished by the market.
The CBN has kept the naira at 197.50 at the official inter-bank market.
The plunge in the global prices of the crude oil, Nigeria’s main forex earner, has battered the economy.