Currency and gold dealers have gone into hiding in Yangon fearing they will be turned into scapegoats after the kyat plunged to an all-time low on Thursday and the price of gold hit its highest peak ever in Myanmar, business sources say.
The kyat hit a record low against the US dollar on Thursday, falling to 5,020 to the greenback, and the price of 24 karat gold hit a new peak of 5.8 million kyats per tical (16.33 grams).
The junta-controlled Central Bank of Myanmar on Wednesday alleged that currency markets, especially for the dollar, were being manipulated. It said fake social-media accounts were being used to spread false news on platforms like Facebook and Telegram that caused the kyat to plunge.
Currency and gold traders have gone into hiding, following reports that the regime has arrested several in Yangon. Currency and gold traders are frequently accused of manipulating the market when exchange rates or gold prices fluctuate wildly.
Junta officials reportedly met on Thursday to discuss the currency crisis. The Irrawaddy could not verify the reports.
Under the elected National League for Democracy government, the kyat’s exchange rate was 1,300 per dollar before the coup. The February 2021 coup plunged Myanmar into a dollar crisis as sanctions, withdrawal of foreign investment, declining exports, and fighting in border trade zones took their toll.
Myanmar’s border trade with China and Thailand has been virtually halted by the fighting since late last year. A steep decline in export earnings means Myanmar is gravely short of dollars, yuan and baht to purchase necessities like fuel and pharmaceuticals as well as consumer goods.
Prices of consumer goods have tripled since the coup, and keep increasing every three to four days.
Meanwhile, the price of gold on the domestic market reached a record high of 5.8 million kyats per tical on Thursday, up from 1.3 million kyats per tical before the coup in 2020.
The price of gold quoted by the junta-controlled Yangon Gold Entrepreneurs Association was about 4 million kyats per tical on Thursday, 1.8 million kyats below the market price.
The central bank advised the public to refer to the exchange rates of authorized dealers, and not to trust exchange rates shared online. Private bank KBZ was buying US dollars for 3,326 kyats each on Thursday and selling them for 3,336 each on Thursday. These rates, however, only applied to students, workers, patients, government employees and individuals going overseas for study, work, meetings and seminars.
