Lebanese Forex Market
Demand for the dollar on the Lebanese forex market was stable over the past month, where the value of the Lebanese pound against the dollar steadied at $/LBP 1,514-1,514.50 with a mid-price of $/LP 1,514.25.
Foreign assets (excluding gold) of the Central Bank increased 9.46% since the beginning of the year to $40.60B by September 2016, boosted by the recent swap executed by BDL with the MoF and Lebanese banks. The dollarization ratio of private sector deposits fell from 64.88% in December 2015 to 64.87% in July 2016.
By Friday the 7th of October 2016, the euro depreciated against the dollar-pegged LP over the last week, dropping from €/LBP 1,685.84 to €/LBP 1,677.55. As for the Nominal Effective Exchange Rate (NEER) of the LBP, it sharply increased by 59.49% to reach 264.25 points, due to the sharp fall of the Syrian pound to $/SYP 517.20.
International Forex Market:
The dollar strengthened this week as data revealed that US jobless claims fell by 5,000 to 249,000 in the week ending October 1. Thus, the euro depreciated against the dollar with the euro/dollar exchange rate dropping from €/$1.1183 to €/$1.1128, this week.
Commodities:
Over the past week, gold prices decreased from $1,327.21/ounce to $1,255.06/ounce this week.