Mayyaleh: USD exchange rate will witness sharp, unprecedented drop

DAMASCUS– Governor of the Central Bank of Syria (CBS) Adib Mayyaleh said on Wednesday that the USD exchange rate will witness a “sharp and unprecedented drop” after the steps announced by the CBS on Tuesday come into effect.

In a statement, Mayyaleh said that this drop will make the speculators who are exploiting the USD exchange rate to make unlawful gains suffer massive losses, according to SANA.

  He said that the decision to exempt exporters from returning the foreign currency procured for exportation expenses, which is one of the aforementioned steps taken by the CBS, will encourage export and provide more foreign currency in the market as a result of the amounts that will become available from exports.

The CBS also announced that it will increase the amount of foreign currency available in markets and in large amounts via direct daily intervention through exchange companies, reiterating its readiness to meet the market’s need for currency for commercial and non-commercial purposes, adding that it set the exchange rate for financing imports at SYP 515 for 1 USD.