The leu has been on the decrease against the main reference currencies. Compared with 31 December 2013, the Moldovan currency dropped by 16.85% against the US dollar, to 15.25 lei as of December 10. It also dropped by 4.85% against the euro to 18.84 lei.
The National Bank explains that the depreciation of the Moldovan currency against the euro in recent days has reflected the dynamics of the EUR/USD exchange rate on international markets.
Besides the 10.3% appreciation of the dollar on international markets since the beginning of the year, another factor pushing the leu down is the seasonal rise in fuel consumption, which usually means a higher demand for foreign currency from companies.
Further factors include the satisfaction of the demand for foreign currency from companies and the net supply of foreign currency from individuals, which has been inferior compared to previous periods; and the psychological effect associated with the regional situation, including the depreciation of currencies in Ukraine and Russia, which are major trade partners for Moldova.
The National Bank assures it closely monitors the situation on the currency market and uses every means to prevent excessive fluctuations of the exchange rates. To this end, in 11 months of 2014, the central bank made interventions of around $263 million in direct net sales.
