"Currency Shift: Nigeria Customs Adjusts Cargo Clearance Exchange Rate from N783/$"

The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) has recently announced a significant adjustment in its exchange rate for cargo clearance, increasing it from N783 per dollar to N952 per dollar, marking a substantial 22.8% surge. A check on the Nigerian government's single window trade portal indicates that the previous exchange rate of N783.17 per dollar has been revised upwards to N951.95 per dollar. This adjustment comes as the second within the last month, with the federal government agency having previously revised the rate in November, moving it from N770.88 per dollar to N783.17 before the latest modification.

It's worth noting that the Nigeria Customs Service imposes duties on cargoes before they are cleared from the ports, with duty rates ranging from 5% to 35%, as specified by the harmonized commodity coding system (HS codes). The agency relies on the revenues generated from these charges and other tariffs, amassing approximately N202 billion on a monthly basis.

The rationale behind the current adjustment by the NCS is attributed to the deprecation of the naira, which was trading at N921.22 to the dollar on the official Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEM) as of Wednesday, November 6, 2023. As a consequence of this latest development by Customs, there is anticipated to be an increase in the prices of imported goods, including cars and food items.