The U.S. dollar (USD) has lost 3.6 percent of its value in terms of its official exchange rate against the Tajik national currency, the somoni (TJS).
The National Bank of Tajikistan (NBT) lowered the exchange rate of the dollar against the somoni from 1:12.96 on April 1 to 1:12.50 on April 4.
Tajikistan’s regulator has not yet given reasons for this decline in the exchange rate of the dollar, which has always been favored as the currency of choice for holding savings.
Practice has shown, however that the NBT makes such rate adjustments due to sharp exchange rate changes in the cash foreign exchange market.
Thus, regulator on March 9 raised the exchange rate of the dollar from the somoni from 1:11.30 to 1:13.00. The NBT officials stated that they were forced to do this because the difference between the official and the unofficial exchange rate had reached 15.9 percent, while it should be no more than 2.0%.
Meanwhile, commercial bank exchange offices in Tajikistan have begun to refuse to buy dollars in recent days.
At the same time, the cash dollar purchase rate noticeably decreased last month. An average market selling exchange rate of the dollar against the somoni fell slightly – from 1:13.04 on March 23 to 1:12.95 on March 30.
The official exchange rate of USD against TJS set by the NBT on March 30 was 1:12.96.
As of March 31, 1.00 USD was trading on the black market at TJS11.65, while the official rate was 13.00 somonis to the dollar.
On April 4, the NBT set the official buying exchange rate of USD against TJS at 1:12.50, while an average market buying exchange rate of USD against TJS was set on Monday at 1:12.05.
However, Tajik commercial bank exchange offices are still declining to buy dollars, citing shortages of the national currency.
Local experts have attributed this situation to the uncertainty of the further exchange rate of the dollar in Russia and its move toward selling its exports in rubles.
Meanwhile, the official exchange rate of the Russian ruble against the somoni was lowered 1.5 percent over the past weekend – from 1:01505 on April1 to 1:0.01481.
The euro has lost 4.0 percent of its value against the dollar over the past weekend – from 1:14.38 on April1 to 1::13.80 on April 4.
