Syria devalues currency as new US sanctions hit

Syria devalues currency as new US sanctions hit

DAMASCUS - Syria's central bank devalued the Syrian pound on Wednesday giving in to weeks of depreciation on the black market as new US sanctions took effect.. The central bank raised the official exchange rate from 704 to 1,256 Syrian pounds to the dollar, in a statement published on its social media pages.. The Damascus government has long blamed the country's economic crisis on international sanctions.. Before the conflict, the exchange rate stood at 47 Syrian pounds to the dollar..