WB: Manat exchange rate remains stable while FX demand increases

The exchange rate of the Azerbaijani manat remained stable at 1.7 AZN/USD, while foreign exchange (FX) demand increased in January, Report informs, referring to the February issue of the Azerbaijan Monthly Economic Update, prepared by the World Bank (WB).

The State Oil Fund of Azerbaijan (SOFAZ) sold $645 million during January, more than doubling the amount it sold in the same period a year ago and exceeding its monthly limit by 8 percent, according to the report.

The Central Bank of Azerbaijan (CBA) also issued more notes to reduce manat liquidity, increasing notes amount to 1 billion manats by end-January, which is almost 60 percent higher than at end-December 2020.

CBA reserves remained stable at $6.4 billion by end-January. SOFAZ assets remained at $43.6 billion by end-2020, on par with end-2019, as valuation gains - 3.473 billion manats - offset lower oil export proceeds (6.587 billion manats).