Lebanese pound drops to new low against USD
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E-mail Xinhua, March 2, 2023
BEIRUT, March 1 (Xinhua) -- The exchange rate of the Lebanese pound on Wednesday slid to a new historic low of 92,000 pounds to one U.S. dollar.
The value of the Lebanese currency lost 7,000 pounds from two days ago when it stood at 85,000 pounds against the dollar.
The Lebanese pound started losing its value in October 2019 at the beginning of the financial crisis, when banks imposed restrictions on the withdrawal of deposits in the U.S. dollar and local currency.
Patrick Mardini, president of the Lebanese Institute for Market Studies, told Xinhua that it is normal to see further depreciation of the Lebanese pound because the country has not yet done any of the supposed reforms.
"We are still printing the Lebanese currency massively to finance the fiscal deficit and pay back dollar-denominated deposits in Lebanese pounds. As long as these two actions continue, the pound will continue to lose its value," he said.
Lebanon's economists have called for electing a president and forming a cabinet capable of implementing administrative and financial structural reforms, including unifying the exchange rate, restructuring the banking sector and approving a law on capital control, in order to bring Lebanon's economy to a recovery path with support from the International Monetary Fund. Enditem
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