There is adequate supply of foreign exchange. This is according to Governor of the Bank of Guyana, Dr. Gobind Ganga. The Governor made this disclosure when he met with the Private Sector Commission [PSC] this week to discuss foreign exchange issue and related matters.
During that engagement the he provided statistical evidence to support the notion of the availability of sufficient foreign exchange.
Dr. Gobin Ganga flanked by PSC members.
Dr. Ganga explained that the Guyana dollar should remain relatively stable due to the current low price of imports of petroleum and petroleum products which more than offset the decline in export receipts.
The Governor opined that one should not pay more than G$215 to G$218 for US$1 but conceded that that there is currently a relatively short waiting period for persons who wish to purchase foreign currency. He also cautioned that demand should be screened to establish the legitimacy of the requests.
The Governor revealed that the Bank is exploring reports that foreign goods, meant for another country, were being paid for using foreign currency sourced from Guyana.
In addition, there were some flows of foreign currency to Suriname by businesses who collected US$ in payment for goods. It was pointed out to the Governor that Guyana enjoyed a stable rate of exchange over several years and the present change is unnerving. Notwithstanding, the Governor pointed out that even with all the speculation in the market, the depreciation of the Guyana dollar was modest. The Commission promised to collaborate with the Central Bank in regular monitoring of the system to defend the currency against speculative threats.