Lebanese Forex Market:
Demand for the dollar in the Lebanese Forex market weakened during the week as the Lebanese pound appreciated against the dollar from $/LP 1,504–1,508 with a mid-price of $/LP 1,506 to $/LP 1,503–1,507 with a mid-price of $/LP 1,505. Foreign assets (excluding gold) at the Central Bank dropped by a monthly 0.12% to reach $38.81B at the end of July. As for the dollarization rate of private sector deposits, it slid from 65.71% in December 2014 to 65.08% by June.
By Friday 21st of August, 2015, 11:30 pm Beirut time, the dollar-pegged LP depreciated against the euro going from €/LP 1,680.71 to €/LP 1,697.14. The Nominal effective exchange Rate (NEER) slightly up ticked by a weekly 0.04% to 166.47 points, bringing its year-to-date gains to 13.00%.
International Forex Market:
The euro was bullish against the dollar for the second week running, as it appreciated by 0.98% to €/$ 1.258. Two factors might be holding the Euro true, one being the overlying Chinese deflationary pressures. The second factor comes with the Federal Reserve latest meeting, where the outcome was fairly dovish as to when interest rates will be hiked due to lower than expected inflationary figures.
Commodities:
Gold improved from last week’s quote of $1,119.00/ounce to $1,153.86/ounce, possibly due to the weak performance of the dollar and the uncertainty on the US front.