Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) — The Uzbek Soum continues its decline against the US dollar. As of September 19, the dollar has risen to 12,734 soums, compared to 12,710 soums a week earlier. Two weeks ago, the soum had been strengthening but then began to depreciate. It fell by 0.63% over the previous five-day period and has now dropped another 0.18%.

The weakening of the soum may be closely linked to the trajectory of the Russian ruble. Over the past few days, the ruble has rapidly devalued on the Russian over-the-counter market without any apparent reasons, and the soum seems to be following suit. This confirms the correlation between the two currencies.

The soum is also under long-term pressure due to ongoing issues with external trade and the trade balance.

Uzbekistan’s internal economic statistics appear neutral to the market. Inflation remains stable, though it has noticeably accelerated on an annual comparison.

For the upcoming week, the USD/UZS exchange rate is expected to fluctuate between 12,700 and 12,790 soums.

Anna Bodrova, Analyst at Alpari