The official Syrian News Agency said today, Tuesday, that President Bashar al-Assad dismissed the governor of the Central Bank of Syria, Hazem Karfoul.
The agency did not mention the reason for the decision.
But it comes in light of the deterioration of the local currency, and the exacerbation of difficulties faced by the Syrians to secure the costs of food, electricity and basic materials.
Reuters reported that Al-Assad sacked Prime Minister Imad Khamis last June after weeks of economic decline, and rare anti-Assad protests erupted in areas under the control of the regime.
The pound has recovered slightly in the past few weeks after recording a low level, with one US dollar equaling 4,000 pounds last March, which prompted the authorities to tighten restrictions on bank withdrawals and internal transfers.
"Reuters" quoted a businessman as saying that "the failure of the central bank governor to take monetary policy measures at least to stabilize the pound in the past few months was the main reason behind his dismissal."