The Syrian lira… a long history from resistance and independence to collapse
How did the Syrian lira collapse against the US dollar?
The Syrian lira … the economic and political history of Syria
The official currency of each country is the entity that expresses the economy and the identity of the country, whether within the state or among other countries, but the situation of the Syrian lira is different; as It is considered as a true entity for the Syrian people and a cornerstone of its economy and its culture as well.
The lira .. is the paper currency that represents the Syrian identity, as it includes in its design the Citadel of Aleppo and Salah Al-Din Al-Ayyubi , the Kingdom of Ugarit and the columns of Palmyra, in addition to other symbols and features of the Syrian Arabic identity, to express the people’s economic and cultural identity .. So, no matter the situation is, and whatever happens to the economic value of the lira, its material and Intangible value remains constant in the hearts of its people..
The history of the Syrian lira
The Syrian lira has a long history that has always been linked to freedom, starting from Syrian independence in 1920, before that, commercial transactions were made through Ottoman gold coins because the Ottoman Empire was the one that was in control of the situation and thus imposed its economic control as well. But with the independence of the country, the economy should have freedom as well, and thus the Bank of Syria was established and the Syrian pound was issued from it for the first time in its history during 1920, which is known as ” the year of independence”.
The Syrian lira nowadays and in the past
The Syrian lira’s link to freedom and independence has always persisted throughout history. With the advent of the French occupation, the lira was linked to the franc, which led to instability and large fluctuations in its value. The lira before the French occupation was equivalent to 20 francs, but with the advent of the occupation it rose to 37 francs, and at that time the American dollar was equivalent to 2.19 Syrian liras. The situation of the lira continued in a state of instability until the beginning of the real economic identity of Syria, when the governor of the Central Bank of Syria and the Syrian Minister of Finance signed a decision in 1953 for the independence of the Syrian lira from other currencies, according to official data issued by the Central Bank of Syria.
The price of the Syrian lira against the US dollar
A few years later, the United States began to control the global economy, which made the US dollar the global currency to which all other currencies are linked, which made investors link the Syrian pound to the US dollar, until 1964 when a decision was made to adopt the fixed exchange value of the lira and pricing the dollar at 3.65 liras and then 11.25 liras in 1989.
The US dollar against the Syrian lira
With the advent of the new millennium, the Syrian pound continued to be linked to the US dollar, which continued to dominate the global economy with no real competition from other currencies, the apparent was that the lira was independent, but in trade and investment it was linked to the dollar, until the advent of economic openness and technological development era, as new currencies and countries competing with the United States appeared, thus the need for the Lira to be linked to other currencies appeared. During the trade expansion in 2007, the lira was linked to a new basket of currencies to be more widespread around the world, such as: (Japanese yen – euro – sterling pound), according to the Central Bank of Syria and the Encyclopedia of Syrian Paper Currency.
The collapse of the Syrian lira
With the great suffering that began in Syria in 2011, the lira was greatly affected by the country’s political events, as was everything in the country, and returned to a period of volatility and instability amid the great fear of all conditions in the country, among which was the economy that began to collapse.
However, overtime the situation got worse, the Syrian economy collapsed further, and the lira went from instability to collapse. Its value declined and the dollar in Syria rose significantly, after being equivalent to 46.5 Syrian lira in 2010, (and the euro was equivalent to 62 Syrian lira in this time), the Syrian lira declined more than 50 times against US dollar.
This massive collapse and instability of lira in particular and the economy in general has become a major concern for Syrians to ask about the Syrian lira’s exchange rate, as social and political conditions in the country continue to worsen.
The value of USD against lira
The collapse in the Syrian lira since 2011 made the exchange rate of one dollar to 59 Syrian lira which was considered as a shocking number for the Syrian people, but the collapse continued and the situation got worse by 2012 when the US dollar value reached more than 80 lira.
The shock came during 2013 when the exchange rate of the dollar against the Syrian lira reached over 300 Syrian lira, but it did not stop there, the Syrian lira continued to deteriorate in 2015, with the exchange rate of the dollar reaching more than 490 lira, and in 2016 the dollar price exceeded 535 Syrian lira.
The series of collapses that occurred during the years of instability in Syria reached its peak last year 2020, when the United States dollar reached almost 2,600 Syrian lira, It was a shock and tragedy for the Syrian people and their economy, which had fallen tragically.
The Syrian lira nowadays
After 10 years of the collapse of the Syrian lira, which began in 2011 and has continued until now, in which there was a tragic fall in the economy and all aspects of life in Syria, Syrians hope that 2021 will be the beginning of return and that the price of the Syrian lira will become stronger today than yesterday and will be able to recover against the dollar, The only solution is to stabilize the political, social and economic situation in order to regain its real value against the currencies of other countries.
The current gold prices in Syria
By moving to the topic of gold in Syria, it was like the dollar, which rose significantly unlike today’s Syrian lira, where gold prices in Syria reached their highest level in the country’s history amid a major economic crisis in Syria, because the exchange rate fluctuation of the dollar always fluctuates the price of precious metal, and with the historical rise of dollar value, there is an unprecedented rise in the prices of gold too.
Currently, the 21-karat gram of gold has reached 156,000 lira, and is naturally affected by the rising prices of yellow metal on the global market, but with the great crisis of the Syrian economy, the currency has fallen significantly against gold, bringing the 21-karat price to an unprecedented level.
The price of USD in Syria nowadays
Syria is the flower of Al-Sham, with a great history of independence and Arabism, and one of the influential countries in the Middle East through its history, politics and economy, so when it is hurt, its pain reaches all Arabs. Hence, all Arab countries have been affected by the unfortunate events that have taken place in Syria over the past years.
Despite the fact of rising prices of US dollar and gold which indicates the collapse in the Syrian economy, but every all Arab know that the return of Syria and its economy will be soon, as it was always steadfast throughout the history, it has stood firm against wars and obstacles, and whatever how long it falls, it has always regained independence.