Baku, Azerbaijan, Feb. 26
By Elchin Mehdiyev, Anvar Mammadov - Trend:
Head of the board of the Central Bank of Azerbaijan Elman Rustamov commented on the third devaluation in Azerbaijan.
The Central Bank of Azerbaijan devaluated manat on Feb.21, as a result of which the exchange rate of manat dropped by almost 34 percent and stood at 1.05 manats per US dollar. Following this, the CBA switched to the floating rate of manat on Dec.21, as a result of which the exchange rate of dollar and euro increased by 47.6 percent and 47.9 percent and stood at 1.55 and 1.685 manats, respectively. As a result, manat's rate against the US dollar dropped by 97.6 percent throughout 2015.
Speaking to reporters Feb. 26, Rustamov said there are no grounds for the third devaluation of manat in the country.
"Although the oil prices are low, they are stable," he said. "Recently, the amendments to Azerbaijan's state budget have been approved in which the real oil price was set," he said.
Moreover, the volume of transfers of the State Oil Fund of Azerbaijan (SOFAZ) was also defined, Rustamov added.
He noted that the stabilization of the foreign trade balance will lead to stabilization of the currency market.
"Optimization of import is observed. There are primary customs statistics, and we will carefully study the statistics for January and February," said Rustamov.
"In general, Azerbaijan's foreign trade balance is also being stabilized. It gives us an opportunity to restore stability in the foreign exchange market and to maintain the stable exchange rate of manat in the floating mode," he added.
Azerbaijani parliament adopted amendments to the country's state budget for 2016 during the plenary session on Feb. 23.
In accordance with the amendments, the adjusted state budget revenues are expected at 16.822 billion manats, which is 15.5 percent more than the approved forecasts. Expenditures of the state budget are projected at 18.495 billion manats.
Edited by SI