Q COSTA RICA – The dollar exchange on Tuesday by some banks reached ¢580 colones for the sell. For example, at 7:00pm, the dollar exchange at the private banks, BCT, Davivienda, Improsa and Scotiabank was ¢580 to one US dollar.
At the Mercado Valores de Costa Rica Puesto de Bolsa, a private stock exchange, the rate quoted at 11:23am was ¢581.
The reference rate set by the Central Bank for today is ¢566.31 for the buy and ¢578.94 for the sell.
The dollar exchange has risen since the beginning of the month. On May 1 the reference rate was ¢557.90 for the buy and ¢570.72 for the sell.
The reference rate on May 17, 2016 was ¢530.76 and ¢543.21
The Banco Central de Costa Rica (BCCR) – Central Bank – explained last week that the rise is due to “variations in the country’s economic situation and the international environment”.
On Tuesday (May 16), the head of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) mission that visited Costa Rica, Lorenzo Figliuoli, explained that there has been an increase in the demand for foreign exchange that is determined by the low domestic rates.
According to Figliuoli, “the current pressure on the exchange rate comes from a change in the private portfolio, which now prefers to save on the currency”.
