(Ecofin Agency) - The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has said that it will start selling dollars to manufacturers, airlines, fuel importers and agriculture businesses in the country at a special market intervention. This aims to clear outstanding backlog of foreign exchange obligations.

The apex bank intends to settle the orders by combining spot and short-term forward deals.

“Authorised dealers' accounts with the central bank will be debited in full for the naira equivalent of the dollar bid amount on a spot basis,” the bank said, not disclosing the amount of dollars it wants to sell.

Since February, CBN has been selling dollars in a bid to manage liquidity shortfall and reduce the gap between the official and black market exchange rates for naira. Close to $5billion has been sold so far, according to analysts. In addition, the bank has also revealed plans to sell N236.66 billion ($777.1 million), short-dated treasury bills at an auction on June 14, 2017. This will be used to clear the deficit in the nation’s budget, manage the liquidity shortfall in the banking system and curb the rising inflation in the economy.

The apex bank intends to sell N39 billion in three-month bill, N23.02billion in six-month bills and N174.64 billion in one-year bills. These bills will be sold using the Dutch auction system and payments will be made the day after the auction.

Anita Fatunji