Lebanon Tries Ways To Revive Its Falling Dollar
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Roshan Amiri
- . January 15, 2022
- . Update: January 15, 2022 11:59 pm
Lebanon–Amidst trouble over corruption, Lebanon is trying hard to revive its currency. As the Lebanese currency hits rock bottom, efforts are now being made by the Central Bank by easing restriction on the dollar purchases. The country is in verge of collapse with no trade coming through, no jobs and constant tussle of black marketing of expensive commodities like oil, natural gas and life saving medicines too.
The civilian population is now in unrest, with fresh protests rocking various cities with regards to rising prices and a collapsing economy. The Lebanese pound currently has lost more than 90% of its value since the country’s financial crisis erupted in 2019, dropped beyond 33,000 to the dollar, though it had clawed back some ground to around 27,200 by January 14.
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Speaking to a respectable media agency the bank Governor Riad Salameh said, “This initiative aims at curbing the volatility of the exchange market and aims at strengthening the pound’s value against the dollar.” In response to the sharp decline, the central bank said it was removing a ceiling related to bank purchases of dollars using the official Sayrafa exchange rate platform. As of now, commercial banks have all but shut their doors to depositors amid a liquidity crunch caused by the economy crumbling under a mountain of state debt.
It is worth noting that, a new cabinet was formed in September 2020. The intent was to start fixing the economy and restart talks with the International Monetary Fund. But sadly, ministers have not met for as long as three months because of dispute over the conduct of an investigation into a huge explosion in Beirut port in 2020. Additionally, Salameh is facing multiple domestic and international investigations into his conduct at the head of the central bank, which he has led for three decades. He denies any wrongdoing.
