GEL rate questions

Former President of the National Bank of Georgia and economic expert Nodar Javakhishvili thinks that it is becoming more and more difficult for the state to maintain the GEL at a stable rate. It is too costly to do this, thinks Javakhishvili.

In January 2009 alone around USD 160 million was spent on stabilizing the currency. The analyst thinks that an exchange rate of GEL 2 to USD 1 would be more appropriate. However the question then arises as to whether the NBG would be able to maintain this rate for long either.

Other experts suggest introducing a floating rate, as national currency rates usually depend on the export-import balance. Here unfortunately Georgia has problems, as its imports exceed its experts several fold.