Shadi Hilaneh, “Akhbar al-Yawm” agency
"Central" sources: mandatory reserve can not be touched
After the Central Bank of Lebanon allowed depositors through Circular No. 161 to exchange the Lebanese pound for US dollars, the exchange rate of the Lebanese pound has improved significantly in recent days.
The fall in the dollar exchange rate in the parallel market yesterday was a surprise and reached below 24,000 lira. The "Bank of Lebanon" announced on Friday that "the volume of trading on the platform "SAYRAFA" amounted to 41 million and 500 thousand US dollars, at a rate of 24,400 Lebanese pounds per dollar, according to the exchange rates of operations carried out by banks and Exchange institutions on the platform.
The "Central" is strongly involved in controlling the manipulation of the black market. The reference price from which the platform will launch, is a price lower than the actual market price, so people go to it through banks, and solve instead of the parallel market.
Sources of the "Central" revealed via "Akhbar al-Yawm" agency that the price of the "platform" of banking will witness a decline tomorrow Tuesday, because the dollar exchange rate in the parallel market fell, by adopting the price of 21 thousand.
The same sources stressed, in response to the misleading statements, that the mandatory reserve can not be touched, because it is formed as a result of special contracts signed between the Bank of Lebanon and Lebanese banks.
Observers believe that the emergence of a black market to determine the dollar exchange rate, as a result of the lack of a decision to address the crisis, the existence of political indifference, and the failure to give the economic and living situation priority. Therefore, the recovery plan should be approved as a first item when the cabinet convenes again, without loading the platform more than it carries, on the basis that it will stabilize the exchange rate, is a speech outside of reason and logic.
In an interview with "Akhbar al-Yawm" agency, concerned sources limited what happened to two interpretations:
1-the rise in the price of the dollar is greatly exaggerated. This means that if the BDL stops pumping dollars, it could be followed by a rise again.
2-the cashiers considered the announcement of the governor of the central bank Riad Salameh is about the start of securing dollars through banks as a step in the framework of measures to reduce the price of the dollar on the black market, so they decided to reduce the price for fear of losing what they have in the future.