Euro weighs heavier

National Bank of Romania (NBR) decided late last year to increase from 60% to 75% the euro’s weight in the foreign currency basket used as reference for the exchange rate of the Romanian currency and to limit the USD’s influence at only 25%, NBR vice-governor Mihai Bogza said. The foreign currency basket is a benchmark the Central Bank uses to oversee the national currency’s depreciation against the main currencies, in which Romania’s trade, the foreign debt and the currency reserves of NBR are denominated. The currency basket has been calculated as of 1999, when the dollar was the main currency, but the euro began to weigh heavier and topped 60% in 2003. ZF