Ethiopia Spent $1.35 Billion Defending Currency Before War
Ethiopia’s birr was among several African currencies to be devalued in recent years.
Photographer: Amanuel Sileshi/BloombergEthiopia is set to keep supporting its currency after spending $1.35 billion buying birr this year, an amount that equates to roughly a quarter of its known central bank reserves.
The National Bank of Ethiopia spent $500 million in biweekly auctions on both Jan. 27 and Feb. 21, its biggest interventions to date, its data show. On Tuesday, the central bank bought $70 million worth of birr from local lenders, which offered to sell $241 million, the central bank said in a statement on its official X account. Despite the move, the birr weakened 0.28% to 157.46 per dollar.