Nigeria's central bank clears additional $64 million FX backlog

Nigeria's central bank has made an additional payment of $64.44m of verified foreign exchange backlog owed to airlines, bringing total payments to $136.73m, a spokesperson said on Tuesday. Africa's biggest economy has about $7b in forex forwards that have matured, a major concern for investors as foreign currency shortages continue to weigh down the naira currency, despite assurances by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to clear the backlog. About $2.5b of the backlog across sectors such as manufacturing, aviation and petroleum has been paid. CBN spokesperson Hakama Sidi Ali said all the verified claims by airlines, which sold tickets in the local naira currency but have been unable to get their money out of the country, had now been cleared.<br/>"The Governor, Olayemi Cardoso, and his team were doubly committed and would stop at nothing to ensure that the verified backlog of payments across all other sectors was cleared and confidence was restored in the Nigerian foreign exchange market," Ali said in a statement.<br/>