The Syrian Pound has remained stable since the beginning of February, trading at around 72 pounds per US Dollar in black market dealings.
The national currency, which still sold at 63 per dollar at the beginning of the year, declined rapidly in January, losing some 12 percent of its value compared to the greenback, which remains the currency of reference in the country.
 
The dollar had risen to close to 73 pounds in mid-January before declining to around 66 pounds after the Central Bank authorized private money traders to price freely the foreign currencies they traded and rising again to 70 pounds towards the end of the month.
 
Since then the currency has remained stable and is traded in three different markets: the official one, priced by the Central Bank, covers all Government transactions; a regulated free market, where banks and other money traders price freely foreign currencies; and a black market.
 
The latter continues to exist because although private money traders set without restriction the prices of the foreign currencies they trade, they are not allowed to trade them freely; in other words restrictions continue to exist on the sale of forex to local residents and companies.
 
On February 20, the dollar was sold at 59 pounds by the Central Bank, at 70 pounds by regulated money traders and at around 72 pounds in the black market. Meanwhile, the Euro was sold at 78 pounds by the Central Bank, at 91 pounds by regulated money traders and at around 93 pounds in the black market.
 
According to the Central Bank, demand for US dollars in the market was negligible yesterday, while demand for Euros reached EUR 1.5 million. These figures do not take into account black market transactions.