The exchange rate of the US dollar in the Syrian black market recorded a new increase, amid fast-paced fluctuations witnessed in the market since the beginning of the week.
On Monday, August 18, the dollar exceeded 11,300 Syrian pounds in the black market, according to Enab Baladi’s monitoring.
In contrast, the Central Bank of Syria kept the official exchange rate of the dollar unchanged, fixing it at 11,000 Syrian pounds in the remittance and exchange bulletin.
Official exchange rate bulletin at the Central Bank of Syria – August 18, 2025 (Central Bank of Syria/Telegram)
This increase comes amid continued economic challenges and growing demand for the dollar in the market for commercial and personal purposes, with no signs so far of direct government intervention.
The economic expert Abdulrahman Mohammed Thabet told Enab Baladi that the Syrian pound is witnessing a sharp decline against the dollar, as its exchange rate in the black market exceeded 11,300 Syrian pounds per dollar, while the Central Bank of Syria fixes a much lower official rate, reflecting a deep economic crisis in the country.
Thabet attributed the pound’s decline to several factors, including:
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Unbacked monetary expansion: Increasing the money supply without real economic growth, which led to the pound losing a large part of its value.
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Inflation and loss of confidence in the local currency: Rising prices and weakening purchasing power pushed citizens toward the dollar as a haven.
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Economic sanctions: Prevented the inflow of foreign currencies and reduced the economy’s ability to attract investments and increase exports.
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Contradictory financial and monetary policies: Lack of coordination among official bodies in addressing the crisis worsened the depreciation of the currency.
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Speculation and market forces: Rising demand for the dollar against a limited supply accelerated the currency’s collapse.
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Political and security conditions: Instability, increased uncertainty, and encouraged people to resort to hard currencies.
Thabet attributed the Central Bank’s fixation of the official rate to attempts to curb inflation, maintain stability in official transactions, avoid acknowledging the currency’s collapse, and protect what remains of foreign currency reserves.
He noted that the economic and social consequences include rising prices of goods and services, erosion of savings, increasing poverty and unemployment rates, and the expansion of the black market, ultimately weakening the effectiveness of monetary policies.
Previous measures
On May 13, the Central Bank of Syria announced a reduction in the exchange rate of the pound against the US dollar.
In its official bulletin, it stated that it set the exchange rate of the pound against the dollar at 11,000 pounds, after the rate had stabilized at 12,000 pounds since last March.
The bank had issued a decision to unify all exchange rate bulletins into a single official bulletin to be adopted as the basis for the transactions of banks and exchange companies. The rates of foreign currencies would be determined according to the average global prices, with a margin of movement not exceeding 1% of the adopted average rate.
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