| 11/03/2022 | 04/03/2022 | %Change | YTD | |
| Euro / LP | 1,653.73 | 1,651.30 | 0.15% | -3.22% |
| Euro / Dollar | 1.0970 | 1.0954 | 0.15% | -3.21% |
| NEER Index | 158.44 | 157.30 | 0.72% | 5.72%
|
Lebanese Forex Market
To-date, the Lebanese Pound (LBP) remained steady within the official range of USD/LBP 1,514 to 1,514.5, with a mid- price of USD/LBP 1,514.25 in the week of March 11, 2022.
Lebanon cannot be far from what is happening outside the border, as the war between Ukraine and Russia is threatening the Lebanese food security. The government should prevent a potential food crisis and find alternative for the Ukrainian Wheat.
This week, the supermarket syndicate has announced that they will stop accepting credit card from their clients as method of payment due to withdrawal restriction imposed by the banks. The BDL is trying to control the exchange market rate on the parallel market by absorbing the currency in circulation. However, BDL must know that most of the retailers aren’t accepting other than cash as method of payment which is creating liquidity crisis.
In turn, the dollarization ratio for private sector deposits decreased from 80.09% in October 2021 to 79.46% in December 2021.
As for the Euro/LBP currency pair, the Euro appreciated against the dollar-pegged LBP with the currency pair going from last week €/LBP 1,651.30 to €/LBP 1,653.73 by March 11, 2022. Moreover, the Nominal Effective Exchange Rate (NEER) of the Lebanese pound slightly increased weekly by 0.72% to stand at 158.44 points on March 11, 2022.
International Forex Market
The Euro/USD appreciated against the dollar from last week from €/USD 1.0954 to €/USD 1.0970 by March 11, 2022. After consecutives weekly losses the Euro has appreciated against the dollar this week. It all depends on what will happen next in the negotiation between Russia and Ukraine. Any positive talks between the two sides will certainly reflect positively on the FX market and will appreciate the Euro.
Commodities
Gold price slightly increased by 0.99% at the end of this week to $1,967.64/ounce. This week, the gold price has increased to $2,000/ounce amid the US sanctions on Russian oil and gaz. However, the market has kindly absorbed the shock, and the daily negotiations between Russia and the West have eased the fluctuation of gold price.
Crude oil prices decreased in end of this week by 2.77% to $110.08/Barrel. The high fluctuation in the price of oil prices has continued this week as it increased during this to $130/barrel. The US sanctions on Russian oil and gas has contributed on the increase of the oil prices, however Canada is considering filling the shortage of the oil into US market. Uncertain times in the commodities market!