IMF, Tokyo lend a hand to Central Bank of Myanmar

IMF, Tokyo lend a hand to Central Bank of Myanmar

By Aye Thidar Kyaw   |   Tuesday, 18 June 2013

The US dollar's newfound strength is being felt in Myanmar, but central bank officials said last week that they have and will continue to ensure a stable exchange rate between the kyat and the greenback.

The Central Bank of Myanmar will limit the impact of the dollar's global rise with technical assistance from the Japanese government and the International Monetary Fund, said U Bharat Singh, deputy director general of the bank's governor's office.

Technical advisors from the Japanese government and the IMF are helping the central bank ensure a stable kyat, officials said.

The bank is monitoring commodity prices, international currency trends, and the domestic currency market, including black-market trading, to ensure its official floating rate keeps pace, U Bharat Singh said. "The exchange rate should be balanced and not favour importers or exporters. We must have stability while maintaining a market rate."

The central bank has been conducting daily currency auctions since April last year in a managed float of the kyat that, officials say, aims to encourage competitive, efficient trading.

Its daily rate was K950 to the dollar on June 14, about half a percent up from June 7, while official money changers were offering K945-952. A black market trader in Kyauktada township said he had not seen a rise in demand for dollars since late May.

 

Source: http://www.articles.myanmaronlinecentre.com/imf-tokyo-lend-a-hand-to-central-bank-of-myanmar/