Damascus - The Economic Micro Committee approved a bill that makes dealing in currencies other than the Syrian Pound a crime subjected to fines and prison sentences of 3 to 10 years.
This bill, which will be referred to the relevant authorities to be passed according to regulations, seeks to prevent manipulation of prices in the market and curb exploitation of citizens' needs.
During the meeting, which was chaired by Prime Minister Wael al-Halqi, the Committee discussed mechanisms for preventing the rise of prices of supply and food goods in markets and implementing regulations to prevent manipulation of the USD price.
The Committee also discussed the possibility of increasing state subsidization of some food materials by providing food baskets at subsidized prices.
For his part, Governor of the Central Bank of Syria (CBS) Adib Mayyaleh said that the CBS sold USD to exchange companies at SYP 247.5 to be sold by these companies at SYP 250, adding that such intervention will be carried out twice a week and that exchange companies can still sell foreign currency to citizens for commercial and non-commercial purposes as per regulations.
Mayyaleh also proposed a bill for compensating citizens for the reduction in purchasing power for their deposits in banks, and the Committee approved this bill on preliminary basis.
© SANA (Syria Arab News Agency) 2013
