FORTUNE+ VIDEO SPONSORED CONTENTS ADVERTORIALS FORTUNE AUDIO Fortune Careers New TRADE AFRICA New

Fortune Logo

Central Bank Eases Forex Burden on Importers, Banks

Mar 22 , 2022

Importers and commercial banks are no longer required to cover the total cost of shipping goods in foreign currency, say regulators at the central bank.

A letter sent to the state-owned Ethiopian Shipping & Logistics Services Enterprise (ESLSE) last week informed its executives that importers and banks need only pay half the transport fees in foreign currency, covering the rest in Birr. They attributed their move to a debilitating level of foreign exchange availability.

Signed by Yinager Dessie (PhD), governor of the National Bank of Ethiopia (NBE), the decision changes the 12-year-old practice covering the total freight costs in foreign exchange. Lately, the NBE has seen commercial banks “struggle" with mobilising forex due to the central bank’s tightened retention policies.

Commercial banks are to collect the transport fees in Birr before converting half into forex and transferring the amount to the shipping company at the end of every month.



Related Posts

Share This Post
Linkedin
Google+


Most read

Latest News

Editor's pick

Commentaries

A Trade War Hits the Flower Aisle. Ethiopia Feels the Thorns

President Donald Trump's decision to impose new tariffs has prompted U.S. customs age...

Start-Up Fever Threatens to Undermine the Public Sector's Core Mission

Around the world, governments are trying to reinvent themselves in the image of a bus...

Fineline

Leaders of the National . . .

Leaders of the National Election Board are in a charm offensive mood, of a sort. Last week, they organised a rare tour for members of the me...

When the country’s most. . .

When the country's most senior diplomats and envoys return back to their posts after two-week debriefings, they leave behind a point or two...

Editorial

Officials Bank on Student Service to Patch a Fractured Country

Apr 13 , 2025

The federal government will soon require one year of national service from university...

Cheap Power Lures Bitcoin Miners. But Millions Wait for a Lightbulb Moment

Apr 6 , 2025

Last week, the International Finance Corporation (IFC), part of the World Bank Group...

Media Council's Edging to Accreditation a Deceitful Drift

Mar 30 , 2025

When the private satellite channel, Ethiopian Broadcasting Service (EBS), aired an em...

Preventing War Far Cheaper Than Paying Its Deadly Price

Mar 23 , 2025

Getachew Redda, head of the Tigray Interim Regional Administration (TIRA), at least u...

Gallery

Parliament Approves New Cabinet Members

Oct 6 , 2021

Parliament Approves New Cabinet, Incorporates Opposition Leaders Lawmakers have approved today the nominations of 22 ministers, including three opposition leaders. Two MPs have voted against, while 12 abstained...

2020 in Posterity

Jan 5 , 2021

TIGRAY VOTES DESPITE "NULL & VOID" THREAT

Sep 9 , 2020

IN-PICTURE: LAUREATE'S RECEPTION  

Dec 14 , 2019

PM Abiy Ahmed (PhD) at a Gala Dinner Called for the Awarding of the Félix Houphouët-Boigny Peace Prize

May 6 , 2019

Faces, Voices of Addis Abeba

Apr 26 , 2019

Sunday With Eden

Grace Over Grind

Over the weekend, I attended a women's gathering that quietly reshaped how I think about balance, ambition, motherhood, and the kind of life...

Breaking Bread, Sharing Hearts

Almost a year ago, my husband and I sat in the living room of a dear friend who had just suffered an unimaginable loss. She had lost a very...

Life Matters

The Awkward Art of Saying Hello

Living side by side with others – sharing walls, staircases, even the same unreliable electricity – should make greetings feel natural....

Showers Are Optional, Guilt Is Not

It's funny how life throws your pre-baby notions right out the window. I vividly remember joking with a friend, back in my carefree days, ab...