Currency panic starts in regions of Belarus

It is a problem to buy dollars in bank branches in the regions. All currency is bought out immediately.

As “Vecherniy Brest” writes, a dweller of Byaroza addressed them. “I was planning a voyage to Khmelnitsky (Ukraine) and decided to buy 200 USD. I have made the round of all the exchange offices in Byaroza, and they were empty! They did not have currency. I had to borrow money from my friend. After I returned from Khmelnitsky, I managed to buy enough dollars. As it turned out, the demand is so high that it is possible to buy dollars only in the morning…”

For the fourth month in a row demand of the population for the foreign currency is outgrowing supply. In particular, in September the population sold 634.7 million dollars (by 3.5% more than in August), and bought 691.9 million dollars (by 6.7% more than the month before), the National Bank of Belarus reports. Besides, the sale of cash currency was 627 million (by 3.6% more), purchase of currency was 643.6 millions (by 4.5% more). Thus, the net purchase of currency by the population (cash and non-cash) was equivalent to 57.2 million dollars, as compared to 35 million in August, 60 million dollars in July and 30.9 million in June. In April and May the population sold more currency then purchased: net sale of foreign currency in May was 29.9 million dollars, 3.6 million dollars in April, AFN reports.