Syrian Money Exchange Union: Central Bank speculating to benefit from high dollar exchange rate

Qamishli – Abdulhalim Suleiman – North-Press Agency

Walid Muhammad Ali, head of the Money Exchange Union in North and East Syria, said that the Syrian government has resorted to speculation and control of the dollar exchange rate due to the lack of exports such as oil, wheat, etc. after years of war.

He added that the Central Bank’s dollar assets are the only and last means for the government. He explained that the Central Bank is selling its assets in the black market inside the country and in Lebanon. Thus, it gets the money needed to cover the cost of buying wheat.

In a statement to North-Press, Ali said that the central bank will get the difference after it displays the dollar in the same markets later, and it will secure the salaries of government employees after it has paid the value of the wheat crop in the Syrian pound.

Economic observers say that the autonomous regions are an important economic center in terms of the volume of foreign currencies that flow to them due to the presence of international organizations, in addition to the presence of Global Coalition to Defeat ISIS in the region and foreign remittances that reach the region from emigrants.

According to Ali, the owner of an exchange shop in Qamishli, the rise in the dollar exchange rate against the Syrian pound is in the interest of the Syrian Central Bank, especially with the approach of wheat harvest season.