Shoppers in Egypt, Lebanon and Iraq left at the mercy of currency markets – The National

Shoppers in Egypt, Lebanon and Iraq left at the mercy of currency markets – The National

The recent economic woes of Egypt, Iraq and Lebanon, though quite different in nature and magnitude, all have one thing in common: instability of the local currency against the dollar.

The three countries, whose currencies are either pegged to the dollar or deeply affected by changes in its value, are facing their sharpest rises in food prices in years.

The problem, caused largely by the knock-on effects of Russia's war on Ukraine and the Covid-19 pandemic, has also been exacerbated by the Arab world’s susceptibility to US foreign and fiscal policies and its often tumultuous domestic politics.