The Central Bank of Nigeria sold yuan at a range of 49-51 naira at its first auction of the Chinese currency last week, traders said on Monday.

The auction, which is part of an attempt to encourage the use of an alternative trading currency, particularly given the high level of imports from China, sold the yuan for immediate value and for 15-day settlement, traders said.

Some lenders got as much as 60 percent of the volume they applied for, while one bank got just 5 percent. They said the volume sold was based on the price quoted for the yuan at the auction.(REUTERS)