There is panic in the aviation industry over the sharp fall of naira against the foreign currencies, with some operators warning that aviation fuel which has risen by over 400 per cent in 2022 may hit N1,000 per litre.
When this happens, they warned, it could disrupt operation and force them to make further adjustments on airline tickets.
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The naira has faced a drastic fall against dollars and pounds in the parallel market in recent times.
There were concerns over the weekend as the British Pound exchanged for N1,005 at the parallel market.
“One thousand pounds is actually a million naira. The country is going to crash,” wrote a twitter user Salami Azeez.
There are fears that the dollar which has also been on a steep rise in value against the naira may cross the N1,000 threshold.
The current black-market rate which is though not recognised by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has almost doubled the official rate and is said to be accessible by Nigerians.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) had last week raided some Bureau De Change (BDC) operators in Lagos, Abuja and Kano to curb the rising exchange rate but the naira has continued to depreciate.
In the aviation sector, operators said the jet fuel price, which has risen to over N800 due to exchange rate issues, could go further.
“Don’t forget the dollar closed at N895 on Friday while the pound closed at N985 but as I am talking to you, the pound was exchanged for over N1,000 and before you know it the dollar would also rise to N1,000. This would portend a serious crisis for us as operators,” one operator said.
An airline executive, Barr. Shehu Wada said, “From what we are seeing, the aviation fuel is also going into that and ticket fare may also be affected.”
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