DUSHANBE, January 8, Asia-Plus – Commenting on increase of exchange rate of US Dollar (USD) against Tajik national currency Somoni (TJS), Tajik expert Tohir Abdujabbor has attributed it to rising inflation rate and speculative transactions on the local currency market.
“Inflation rate was quite high in Tajikistan lately, and it led to increase of the USD exchange rate in the country,” the expert said.
As far as speculative transactions on the currency market are concerned, Mr. Abdujabbor said that they were speculating for the rise and the decline in exchange rate of USD against TJS in order to get more profit.
Specialists from Tajik central bank agreed to this view and added that there were also other reasons for increase of the USD exchange rate. According to them, the USD exchange rate depends on supply and demand on market.
“Some 90 percent of accounts on foreign economic activities are made in dollars and the same situation is in money transfer operations (85 percent),” said Ms. Zebo Fathiddinova, an official with the National bank of Tajikistan (NBT). Besides, trade balance also influences the currency exchange rate, according to her.
We will recall that according to the Belarus news agency BelaPan, as of December 31 2007 TJS has stood in the second place among the CIS currencies in terms of increase in exchange rate of the US Dollar (USD), following Uzbekistan’s Sum.
In Uzbekistan, the exchange rate of USD against Sum last year increased by 4.03 percent, from 1,240 in December 2006 to 1,290 in December 2007.
In Tajikistan, the exchange rate of USD against TJS in 2007 increased by 1.2 percent, from 3.4265 in December 2006 to 3.4649 in December 2007.
Belarus with a 0.47 percent increase in the exchange rte of USD against Belarus Ruble has been ranked third. In Belarus, the exchange rate of USD increased from 2,140 in December 2006 to 2,150 in December 2007.
In Turkmenistan and Ukraine, the exchange rate of USD has remained the same, while in other CIS states, it has declined.
In Armenia, the USD exchange rate has reduced by 16.31 percent, Azerbaijan – by 2.98 percent, Georgia – by 7.11 percent, Kazakhstan – by 5.28 percent, Kyrgyzstan – 6.89 percent, Moldova – 12.29 percent, and Russia – by 6.78 percent.
