Lebanese Forex Market
Demand for the dollar on the Lebanese forex market fell over the past week, where the value of the Lebanese pound against the dollar dropped from a mid-price of $/LP 1,514.25 within the range of $/LP 1,514 -1,514.50 to a mid-price of $/LP 1,514 within the range of $/LP 1,513.75 -1,514.25.
Foreign assets (excluding gold) at 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 14th of October 2016, the euro depreciated against the dollar-pegged LP over the last week, dropping from €/LBP 1,677.55 to €/LBP 1,661.57. As for the Nominal Effective Exchange Rate (NEER) of the LBP, it rose by 0.23% to reach 264.86 points.
International Forex Market:
The dollar strengthened this week as the Federal Reserve meeting minutes suggested that the Fed may be inclined to execute a rate hike in December. Thus, the euro depreciated against the dollar with the euro/dollar exchange rate dropping from €/$1.1128 to €/$1.1022, this week.
Commodities:
Over the past week, gold prices fell from $1,255.06/ounce to $1,249.58/ounce this week, in line with a stronger dollar.
14/10/2016 | 07/10/2016 | %Change | YTD | |
Euro / LBP | 1,661.57 | 1677.550 | -0.95% | |
Euro / Dollar | 1.1022 | 1.1128 | -0.95% | |
NEER Index** | 264.86 | 264.25 | 0.23% | 57.30% |