| 2008: Drop in the demand for the dollar in Iraqi dinar auction |
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May 21, 2008 Demand for the dollar was down in the Iraqi Central Bank's dinar auction on Wednesday, reaching $76.130 million compared to $127.485 million on Tuesday. "The demand hit $4.180 million in cash and $71.950 million in foreign transfers outside the country, all covered by the bank at a stable exchange rate of 1,199 Iraqi dinars per dollar," according to the central bank's daily bulletin which was received by Aswat al-Iraq - Voices of Iraq - (VOI). The 12 banks that participated in the auction offered to sell dollars, which the bank bought at an exchange rate of 1,197 dinars per dollar. Speaking to VOI, Ali al-Yasseri, a trader, said the demand for the dollar has unexpectedly and significantly decreased on Wednesday. The fall in the exchange rate encourages banks and traders to increase their remittances, he added. The Iraqi Central Bank runs a daily auction from Sunday to Thursday. Source: Voices of Iraq |