The positive difference between the purchase and sale of foreign currency by individuals last year increased more than twofold compared to the level of 2023. This is reported in the Central Bank's report.
The total turnover in the currency exchange sector involving individuals amounted to $25.5 billion, which is an 18.7% increase from the previous year. Citizens sold currency worth $16.1 billion (+30.5%), while the volume of purchases rose by only 2.7% to $9.39 billion.
Over the year, Uzbeks sold banks $6.72 billion more in currency than they purchased, which served as an additional source of currency supply in the domestic market. In comparison, the difference was $3.2 billion the previous year.
The highest volume of currency sales by citizens was recorded in August and September, when the monthly figure exceeded $1.5 billion; it also approached this mark in May, July, and December. The lowest volumes occurred in the first quarter, with the average monthly amount being just over $1 billion.
Uzbeks purchased the most foreign currency in April, totaling $893 million, with December coming in second at $875 million. Demand reached its lowest in February ($683 million) and June ($708 million).
Previously, Spot reported that the annual volume of remittances from abroad increased by 30%.