USD, RUB transactions continue growing in Armenia`s interbank foreign  exchange market Mar 10 to 14, 2025

ArmInfo. From March 10 to 14, 2025, dollar transactions and the same number of ruble transactions were conducted on the Armenian interbank currency market, while euro  transactions resumed. As a result, the weekly trend of dollar  transactions remained on the rise with a slowdown in rates from 33%  to 24%, while ruble transactions continued to grow, but with an  acceleration in rates from 12% to 21.4%. As a result, the prevalence  of the weekly volume of dollar transactions over ruble ones did not  change (1.7 times), but over euro ones it turned out to be more  significant (22 times).

In parallel with this, in the intra-bank currency market during the  reporting week (10-14.03.25 compared to 03-07.03.25) the trend of  buying and selling dollars headed towards a decline, in euro  transactions the slowdown in the growth of buying was accompanied by  the exit of the sales trend from a decline to an increase, and in  ruble transactions sales lingered in the decline, where the buying  trend also headed. As a result, from 10 to 14 March this year the  dram began to strengthen both against the dollar - from 395.3 to  391.3 drams/$1, and against the euro - from 426.8 to 425 drams/1  euro, while weakening against the ruble - from 4.40 to 4.49 drams/1  ruble. A year earlier, on March 14, 2024, the dram exchange rate to  the dollar was 403.5 drams/$1, to the euro - 440.5 drams/1 euro, and  to the ruble - 4.38 drams/1 ruble, which, compared to current rates,  indicates an annual revaluation of the dram to the dollar and euro,  with a devaluation to the ruble.

According to the Central Bank of the Republic of Armenia, the total  volume of dollar transactions on the interbank currency market from  March 10 to March 14 this year amounted to $16.450 million at an  average rate of 394.05 drams/$1 (against 395.22 drams/$1 a week  earlier), the total volume of ruble transactions amounted to 850  million rubles at an average rate of 4.46 drams/1RUB (against 4.41  drams/1RUB a week earlier), and the volume of a single euro  transaction amounted to 700 thousand euros at an average rate of  426.25 drams/1EUR. In particular, the interbank currency market was  active throughout the reporting week, but it is worth noting that  dollar transactions were not carried out only on Friday (March 14),  ruble transactions were absent only on Wednesday (March 12), and the  only euro transaction occurred on Friday (March 14). The maximum  volume of dollar transactions "appeared" on Wednesday (March 12) -  $8.8 million, and the largest volumes of ruble transactions occurred  on Tuesday and Thursday (March 11 and 13) - 300 million rubles each.

On the intra-bank currency market from March 10 to March 14 of this  year, in comparison with the previous week (03-07.03.25), the trend  of buying and selling dollars reversed from 1.2-16.4% growth towards  a 4-16.5% decline; for euro transactions, the slowdown in the growth  of buying from 17.1% to 10% was accompanied by the sales trend  exiting from a 22.3% decline to a 13.2% growth; and for ruble  transactions, the reversal of the buying trend from a 19.3% growth  towards a 14.2% decline was accompanied by a slowdown in the decline  in sales from 56% to 11%. As a result, over $109.8 million was  purchased during the reporting week at an average rate of 391.62  dr/$1, 40.1 million euros at an average rate of 423.43 dr/1EUR, and  13.5 billion rubles at an average rate of 4.47 dr/1RUB, and $163.4  million was sold at an average rate of 394.89 dr/$1, 81.9 million  euros at an average rate of 430.78 dr/1EUR, and over 2.6 billion  rubles at an average rate of 4.57 dr/1RUB. The largest volume of  dollar purchases and sales occurred on Monday (March 10 - $25.7  million and $39 million), the same day saw the maximum volume of euro  and ruble purchases (March 10 - 12.3 million euros and 3.3 billion  rubles), and the maximum sales of euro and ruble occurred on Friday  (March 14 - 19.99 million euros) and Wednesday (March 12 - 619.2  million rubles).

According to the Central Bank of the Republic of Armenia, in 2024,  the Central Bank intervened in the foreign exchange market only in  April-October in the amount of $705.5 million, and these were only  purchase operations (in April for $20 million, in May for $136.5  million, in June for $100 million, in July for $110 million, in  August for $132.3 million, in September for $119 million and in  October for $87.7 million). Moreover, in terms of purchase  operations, the dram rate weakened to October 388.03 drams/$1 from  last year's September 386.60 drams/$1, when purchase operations were  last carried out in 2023, while compared to the December 2022 rate,  it strengthened from 393.50 drams/$1.

In the intra-bank foreign exchange market in 2024, $6.8 billion, 1.7  billion euros and 770.7 billion rubles were purchased, and $9.96  billion, 3.6 billion euros and 266.1 billion rubles were sold. This  formed the purchase rate on the intra-bank currency market in  December at the level of 394.84 dr/$1, 413.75 dr/1 euro and 3.84 dr/1  ruble, and the sale rate at the level of 398.16 dr/$1, 420.09 dr/1  euro and 3.97 dr/1 ruble, against the December 2023 402.72 dr/$1,  437.90 dr/1 euro, 4.43 dr/1 ruble - for purchase, and 406.14 dr/$1,  445.57 dr/1 euro, 4.50 dr/1 ruble - for sale.

In 2024, dollar transactions worth $993.4 million and ruble  transactions worth 39.2 billion rubles were made on the interbank  currency market, while the volume of euro transactions amounted to  47.8 million euros (no transactions with this currency were made only  in June and November). This was accompanied by the strengthening of  the dram on the interbank currency market both against the ruble to  December's 3.84 drams/1 ruble, and against the dollar to 396.1  drams/$1, from December 2023's 4.47 drams/1 ruble and 405.62  drams/$1, respectively. On the interbank currency market, the largest  volumes of dollar and euro transactions ($195.3 million and 14.4  million euros) were made in September, and ruble transactions in  August (7.2 billion rubles).

The currency exchange platform, after eight years of "silence", began  to operate in June 2024 and in five months (June-October) dollar  transactions were carried out for a total of $14.7 million,  accompanied by the strengthening of the dram from June 388.90 to  October 387.75 dram/$1. In November-December, the currency exchange  platform was empty.

Ruble transactions on the Armenian interbank currency market started  on March 14, 2022 and from that moment until the end of the year,  transactions worth 8.7 billion rubles were carried out, and another  17.5 billion rubles for the whole of 2023. This was accompanied by a  weakening of the dram against the ruble on the interbank currency  market in March-December 2022 from 4.86 to 5.8 drams/1 ruble, but by  the end of 2023 the dram strengthened against the ruble to 4.47  drams/1 ruble.