Nigeria's central bank on Monday asked banks to submit bids for a "special currency auction" to clear the backlog of matured outstanding dollar obligations for selected sectors of the economy, traders said on Monday. The central bank instructed commercial lenders to submit backlog dollar demand from fuel importers, airlines, raw materials and machinery for manufacturing firms and agricultural chemicals by 1500 GMT for a special forex intervention.
Nigeria is in its first recession in 25 years, caused by low global oil prices which have cut the supply of dollars needed to fund imports. Attacks by militants on pipelines in the oil-rich Niger Delta since January have reduced crude output, reducing dollars earned.