At the official rate, the Tajik national currency, the somoni (TJS), has lost 15 percent of its value against the U.S. dollar (USD).
According to data from the National bank of Tajikistan (NBT), the official exchange rate of the somoni against the U.S. dollar fell from 11.3:1 on March 7 to 13:1 on March 9 (a 15-percent increase).
The current black market exchange rate of the somoni is against the dollar is 13.25:1.
The somoni also lost 14.9 percent of its value against the Euro over the reporting period. Tajikistan’s regulator says the exchange rate of the somoni against the euro fell from 12.3488:1 on March 7 to 14.1908:1 on March 9.
Meanwhile, the somoni lost 8.5 percent of its value against the Russian Ruble (RR) from 0.091:1 on March 7 to 0.0995:1 on March 1.
As far as the current average market exchange rate of the TJS against the USD is concerned, it is also 13:1.
Meanwhile, the current average market exchange rate of the TJS against the RR is 0.097:1.
It is to be noted that the Russian ruble has lost 35 percent of its value against the somoni since February 24, when Russia launched the so-called special military operation in Ukraine.
The official exchange rate is the rate of exchange announced by a country's foreign exchange administration, usually used by countries with strict foreign exchange controls.
The market exchange rate refers to the real exchange rate for trading foreign exchange in the free market.
The current collapse of the Russian ruble and the Russian stock market downturn are explained by the increased geopolitical tensions present for Ukraine.
Geopolitical tensions have worsened, after Russian President Vladimir Putin made the decision to hold a special military operation in Ukraine in response to the address of leaders of Donbass republics.
Experts say the Western sanctions imposed on Russia over the Ukraine crisis will put economic strain on many smaller countries with close economic ties to the Russian Federation.
One of those countries is Tajikistan.
Even before the recognition announcement by the Kremlin, the international financial ratings agency Moody's put Tajikistan — along with Armenia, Belarus, Kyrgyzstan and Moldova — on a list of countries most likely to be affected by sanctions on Russia.
A study by Moody’s in particular, says that if sanctions are imposed, they will affect the CIS countries, which have close economic, financial, and energy ties with Russia through various channels.
Experts note that if RR devalues significantly, the currencies in Central Asia’s nations will also depreciate.
One of the first economic measures in Tajikistan that will be hit due to sanctions against Moscow are the many millions of dollars in remittances from the estimated more than 1 million Tajik labor migrants working in the Russian Federation.
