US dollar exchange rate exceeds 12,100 soums mark

On Thursday, August 10, commercial banks of Uzbekistan raised the US dollar exchange rate to a new record high.

Most banks are selling the US currency at 12,130 - 12,135 soums. The USD rose by more than 400 soums, showing the sharpest jump in the rate in recent years.

Last March, when the previous dollar jump was observed, the Central Bank increased its interventions in the foreign exchange market, allowed banks to set the rate themselves and change it during the day.

Then the growth in the volume of transfers from abroad increased the supply of currency and ensured the strengthening of the soum. By the end of June, the national currency won back the devaluation, which in mid-March was 6.8%, twice as much as it was in the whole of 2021.

Then the dollar rose to 11,000 soums and fluctuated around this level until the end of September, after which the rate began to rise again. Several times since the beginning of this year, the dollar rose sharply in price, but then fell again for a while.

Since the beginning of July, the value of the US currency has updated its highs several times. In the past few days, the rate fluctuated at levels above 11,700 soums.

The Central Bank said that a significant depreciation of the national currencies of major trading partner countries led to the acceleration of soum’s devaluation (It had a negative impact on foreign exchange earnings and the volume of foreign exchange supply in the domestic market through export channels and money transfers to the country),

“The Central Bank has sufficient tools to prevent a sharp depreciation of the exchange rate, in order to reduce volatility by conducting additional interventions if necessary,” the bank said.