Over the past few weeks, the naira has appreciated from a record low of around N1,900/dollar to N1,148/dollar as of April 12, prompting the US investment bank, Goldman Sachs, to pronounce it the best performing currency in the world in April.
This has come as a reprieve to many Nigerians who have been battered by the negative effects of the seemingly perpetual and unstoppable depreciation of the naira against the dollar. One of the areas where Nigerians have felt the pangs of the weak local currency is in the prices of goods and services. Prices of everyday goods, including staple foods and household items, seemed to soar with every visit to the market. This also manifested in higher transportation costs, utility bills and other services.
This synchronized rise in the prices of goods and services with the depreciation of the naira is largely a result of the country’s huge dependence on imported goods.