Official reserves decline to USD 547M by end of September

The Maldives’ official reserves stood at USD 547 million at the end of September, according to statistics released by the central bank, Maldives Monetary Authority (MMA).

This represents a 14.9 percent decline from August, when official reserves stood at USD 643.9 million. Similarly, usable reserves fell from USD 200.6 million to USD 169.8 million, marking a 15.4 percent decrease.

According to the data, the primary reason for the decline in reserves was that the MMA’s total foreign currency sales in September exceeded its total inflows. In particular, the MMA’s foreign currency sales surged by 46.9 percent compared to the previous month.

A significant factor contributing to the increase in foreign currency sales was the MMA’s sale of dollars to the government to facilitate the final USD 50 million repayment of a USD 150 million T-bill. The T-bill was originally issued through the State Bank of India (SBI) in 2019 to provide budgetary support.

In line with previous months, the MMA continued to sell dollars to commercial banks in September to improve foreign currency availability and provide liquidity to the exchange market.

Furthermore, the dollar allowance for Maldivians travelling abroad for medical treatment was increased effective August 1 last year. To help mitigate the challenges faced by citizens seeking healthcare overseas, the MMA has been facilitating the disbursement of foreign currency through local banks for more than a year.