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© Reuters. The Syrian Central Bank devalues the local currency for the second time in a month
Beirut, Feb 2 (.).- The Central Bank of Syria raised on Thursday the official exchange rate for receiving remittances and currency exchange from 4,522 liras to one dollar to 6,650 per US bill, in the second devaluation of the local currency in just one month.
The new value represents a depreciation of 32% and leaves the official exchange rate only slightly below the price of the lira on the black market, where this afternoon it is exchanged at around 6,900 units for a dollar, according to the monitoring website of that coin “Syrian Pound Today”.
The Central Bank announced in a statement that banks and exchange houses will be able to receive remittances and exchange currencies at the exchange rate of 6,650 liras for one dollar, a measure with which the issuing entity intends to encourage exports and guarantee the availability of products in the local market.
With this, the exchange rate for these transactions registered a rise of 47%, just one month after the Central Bank applied another strong increase.
Over the past two months, the Syrian lira has lost value rapidly on the black market, coinciding with a similar trend in the Lebanese pound across the border.
The economies of both countries are closely linked and many Syrians have bank accounts across the border to weather the effects of international sanctions against Damascus, allowing Syria to continue with a certain volume of imports.
In addition, large amounts of cash dollars are smuggled from Lebanon to Syria, affecting the fluctuation of both currencies.
