Lebanese Forex Market
Demand for the dollar on the Lebanese forex market slightly increased over the past week as the value of the Lebanese pound against the dollar fell from a mid-price of $/LP 1,514.13 within the range of $/LP 1,514-1,514.25 to a mid-price of $/LP 1,514.25 within the range of $/LP 1,514 -1,514.50.
Foreign assets (excluding gold) of the Central Bank increased 9.81% since the beginning of the year to $40.73B by August 2016. The dollarization ratio of private sector deposits fell from 64.88% in December 2015 to 64.84% in June 2016.
By Friday the 2nd of September 2016, the euro depreciated against the dollar-pegged LP as the exchange rate fell by 0.93%, over the last week, going from €/LP 1,701.52 to €/LP 1,685.69. As for the Nominal Effective Exchange Rate (NEER), it grew by 0.26% to reach 166.10 points.
International Forex Market:
The dollar grew stronger against the euro over the past week with the euro/dollar exchange rate falling from €/$1.1287 to €/$1.1182, this week. The growth of the dollar came as a result of increased speculations over an interest rate hike to occur this year in the US.
Commodities:
Over the week, demand for gold fell pushing down the price of an ounce to $1,311.96/ounce from last week’s $1,327/ounce.