US Interest Rate Hikes Push the Euro Down

Lebanese Forex Market:

Demand for the Lebanese Pound increased this week as the exchange rate went from 1,510.5-1,514.5 with a mid-price of $/LP 1,512.5 to $/LP 1,510-1,514 with a mid-price of $/LP 1,512.

Foreign assets (excluding gold) of the Central Bank rose by a monthly 0.20% to $37.81B at the end of November 2015. As for the dollarization rate of private sector deposits, it slid from 65.71% in December 2014 to 64.62% by September this year.

By Friday 18th of December, 2015, 15:30 pm Beirut time, the dollar-pegged LP appreciated against the euro as the exchange rate declined by a weekly 1.12% from €/LP 1,650.11 to €/LP 1,631.57 . As for the Nominal effective exchange Rate (NEER), it increased by a weekly 3.22% to 174.64 points.

International Forex Market:

The euro depreciated against the dollar dropping 1.12% to €/$ 1.0823, after the US Federal Reserve increased interest rates by 25 basis points.

Commodities:

The strong demand for the dollar pushed investors away from gold. The price of gold declined from last week’s $1,064/ounce to $1,059.81/ounce.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *