Dollar Jumps Up ˘12 Colones In Last Two Days
The dollar began the new year with a jump
start gaining ˘12 colones in the last two
days after a steep drop in the last weeks of
December.
The exchange rate this morning posted by the
Banco Central de Costa Rica (BCCR) - Central
Bank, is ˘570.40 for the buy and ˘580.56 for
the sell.
The posted rate on Tuesday (January 5) was
˘558.15 for the buy and ˘568.02 for the
sell, and increase of ˘12.25 and ˘12.54
colones, respectively.
Economists blame the heavy swing of the
exchange rate on the policies of the Central
Bank which keeps a wide range in the floor
(˘500) and ceiling (˘600) of the exchange
rate band.
One economist, Johnny Alavardo, says that
this wide fluctuation allows major swings in
the market.
"Market conditions change daily and with
such policy an exporter could come tomorrow
with a huge amount of dollars, flooding the
market with the currency, and forces the
price for the currency to drop. In contrast,
an importer makes a purchase with a large
amount of dollars, forcing the currency to
be more expensive", said Alvarado to the
daily, Diario Extra.
The economist feels that the range in the
band should not be more than ˘20 colones.
Affecting the exchange rate this week is
also the drop in the "tasa básica pasiva"
(basic lending rate), dropping from 8.25% to
8%, which immediately affected loan in
colones.
The rate is expected to drop even further in
the coming weeks, due to the lower inflation
rate which is currently 4%, lower than
forecast.
Alvarado explained that an 8% tasa básica
pasiva is still to high given the current
economic conditions, saying is should be at
5%.
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