Guyana dollar down by 3.1% at June 30 -Dr Ganga Stabroek News July 17, 1998 The Guyana dollar depreciated by about 3.1% for the first half of the year, Research Director at the Central Bank, Dr Gobind Ganga confirmed Thursday. The weighted exchange rate at the end of December last year was $144.4 to US$1 and at the end of June it was $148.99 to US$1. Market analysts do not see the Guyana dollar regaining the lost ground, but Dr Ganga would not be tied on this question. Instead, he said that he expected the dollar to stabilise. "I expect a rebound in world market prices for our produce and we are already seeing changes in rice prices. Gold prices will also rebound. Increased volume exports as well as increased market prices will contribute toward a stable dollar," Dr Ganga said. He did concede, however, that depreciation is to be expected in a flexible exchange rate regime such as the one operating in Guyana. The Guyana dollar value kept slipping in face of the declining inflows, which resulted from a number of factors including declining world market prices for Guyana's commodities and the lower production because of the El Nino weather phenomenon and the political unrest. The Bank of Guyana's intervention in the foreign currency market was US$28 million, 70% more than for the first half of 1997. This intervention has affected the country's international reserve requirement position. However, Dr Ganga said the intervention was done with the reserve requirement in mind and to protect that position. The volume of transactions recorded for the first half of the year was about US$564 million, 13% below the same period last year. The spreads between the buying rate and selling rate of the US dollar at cambios have widened during the period under review.