Expert: Manat rate maintained artificially
"Dollar has never been as high as today in Azerbaijan."
The statement came from economic expert Samir Aliyev commenting on the current dollar rate which makes AZN 1.7742 on the bilateral currency auction.
Aliyev added that Azerbaijan's national currency has not yet found its market value:
"World oil prices are growing along with national currencies. It happens in most countries."
"But this does not happen in Azerbaijan, because manat has not yet found its market value. Manat rate is maintained artificially. Therefore, the process proceeds toward decline in manat value. I think that this process will continue. The matter is whether it is sharp or soft. Central Bank's behavior hints that the process will be soft."
The economist believes that if the oil price tops $60, it will help the government to prevent sharp devaluation of national currency through increasing revenues:
"The current economic state of Azerbaijan does not allow keeping manat rate stable. If they keep manat stable, they will have to shift to sharp devaluation. Therefore, devaluation must be soft."
News.Az
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