The US Dollar has continued to climb in black market trading to reach levels not seen since the beginning of the popular uprising two years ago.
The dollar is traded today afternoon at close to 130 Syrian pounds from some 120 pounds a week ago. The dollar climbed throughout the week to around 123 pounds at the end of last week before rising again in the last two days.
The factors behind this recent decline in the value of the national currency are not very clear. The governor of the Central Bank, Adib Mayaleh, made last week yet another statement on the resolve of his institution to defend its currency.
Contrary to previous occasions, the climb of the dollar in the black market was not met with a new devaluation of the official rate of the currency by the Central Bank. The Bank continued today to trade the dollar at some 96 pounds.
Meanwhile, the rate of the Euro stood at some 165 pounds in the black market and at around 126 pounds in the formal market regulated by the Central Bank.
The dollar was traded at around 47 pounds in March 2011, prior to the beginning of the uprising.
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