عربي English Türkçe اردو فارسى
Logo
Latest News
Business

Syria Central Bank Floats New 5,000 Lira Banknote Amid Soaring Inflation

The new 5,000 Lira banknote issued in Syria
The new 5,000 Lira banknote issued in Syria
TT
20
TT

Syria Central Bank Floats New 5,000 Lira Banknote Amid Soaring Inflation

The new 5,000 Lira banknote issued in Syria
The new 5,000 Lira banknote issued in Syria

The Central Bank of Syria (CBS) on Sunday issued a new banknote for a denomination of 5,000 Liras, the largest to date, amid the worst economic and living crisis facing the country since the start of the conflict nearly 10 years ago.

Announcing the new bill on its official Facebook page, CBS revealed that it started printing the newly-designed banknote some two years ago and that it bears on one side a photo of a soldier saluting the Syrian flag along with a fresco from the Baal Shemin Temple in the ancient city of Palmyra.

This is the third time that CBS issues new banknotes to confront inflation within the last five years. According to international economic reports, the inflation rate in Syria reached 263.64% in 2020.

Syria’s currency has been on a downward spiral since the conflict began in 2011. Trading that year at 48 liras to the dollar, it’s now officially up to trading at 1,256 liras to the dollar. On the black market, the dollar is trading at nearly double the official value.

The currency crash has sent prices of food and basic goods soaring.

The economic hardship has been made worse by the pandemic restrictions, increased Western sanctions on the Syrian government and its allies for their role in the war, and years of corruption and mismanagement

The World Food Programme (WFP) has recorded a 249% hike in the price of basic foods and warned that 9.3 million Syrians are living in food insecurity, with more than 2 million more at risk.

It is worth noting that the new banknote released by CBS is worth about four dollars at the official rate.

CBS said that the new banknote was issued "to meet the need of the market, facilitate cash transactions and reduce their costs."

In other news, banknotes denominating 50, 100, 200 Liras have been put out of circulation due to their staggeringly diminished value.

Several years ago, CBS printed new 50, 100, 200, 500, and 1000 Liras banknotes and put them into circulation. Notes were printed in 2015 and put into circulation in the second half of 2017.

Most Viewed

 
Business

US Energy Secretary Says Riyadh and Washington to Sign Civil Nuclear Agreement

US Energy Secretary Chris Wright speaks at the press conference in the Saudi capital Riyadh. Photo: Turki al-Aqaili
US Energy Secretary Chris Wright speaks at the press conference in the Saudi capital Riyadh. Photo: Turki al-Aqaili
TT
20
TT

US Energy Secretary Says Riyadh and Washington to Sign Civil Nuclear Agreement

US Energy Secretary Chris Wright speaks at the press conference in the Saudi capital Riyadh. Photo: Turki al-Aqaili
US Energy Secretary Chris Wright speaks at the press conference in the Saudi capital Riyadh. Photo: Turki al-Aqaili

The United States and Saudi Arabia will sign a preliminary agreement on energy cooperation and civilian nuclear technology, US Energy Secretary Chris Wright said on Sunday.

Wright spoke at a press conference in the Saudi capital Riyadh where he arrived from the United Arab Emirates on Saturday as part of a regional tour that will also take him to Qatar.

His visit comes amid world economic turmoil over the tariffs imposed by US President Donald Trump. But Wright said that these tariffs don’t seek to restrict trade, rather they aim for fair and reciprocal trade.

His visit also comes ahead of an expected visit by Trump to the Kingdom, the UAE and Qatar in May to consolidate relations.

The US Energy Secretary told journalists at the Saudi Energy Ministry that Riyadh and Washington were on a "pathway" to reaching an agreement to work together to better develop energy resources and energy infrastructure, in addition to mining cooperation, civilian nuclear technology and energy production.

Wright said further details over a memorandum detailing the energy cooperation between Riyadh and Washington would come later this year.

Saudi Minister of Energy Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman announced last September that the Kingdom is working to develop peaceful uses for nuclear energy across various fields.

In his press conference on Sunday, Wright discussed the meetings he has held in Riyadh. There have “been very wide ranging dialogues for a day and a half now and they're going to continue. We've talked about energy in all aspects of energy. We've talked about mining, critical materials. We've talked about processing in industry. We've talked about climate change. We've talked about human lives and what drives their improvement and how best to achieve those ends,” he said.

On Saturday, Prince Abdulaziz met with Wright at King Abdullah Petroleum Studies and Research Center (KAPSARC) where the US official was briefed on the Center's role in the fields of energy policy research and its transitions, climate change, sustainable transportation, and consultancy services, in addition to the development of models and analytical tools that contribute to finding solutions to current challenges in the energy sector. They also discussed opportunities for cooperation in energy research, exchange of expertise, and strengthening joint research efforts.

Wright said Sunday that he believed “Saudi Arabia will be one of the leading countries in investing in the United States. I think that's a win for the Kingdom here. It's a win for the United States. And for us, most importantly, it's a win for the working class and American citizens to have better job opportunities.”

He added that the “broader objectives” of the US and Saudi Arabia “are prosperity at home and peace abroad.”

Wright also said in response to a question by Asharq Al-Awsat that tariffs are part of Trump's economic agenda.

He said Trump is trying to grow the flow of goods outside the United States into other countries while sustaining imports and engagement with countries from around the world. “So that's a way you could describe this. Fair trade, not restricted trade, just fair trade, reciprocal trade.”

He added that the United States has seen a lot of its intensive industries, particularly energy, move outside of the country and be outsourced somewhere else. “Too many Americans have seen their job opportunities shift overseas.”

“So tariffs are also a way to give a nudge and encourage investment into our country, to make products in our country, to grow economic opportunity and prosperity in America.”