Exchange Rates on 10-Dec-08 in SLRS

(1) The average rates of the following currencies quoted by commercial banks in Colombo.

Currency		Buying Rate	Selling Rate

U.S. Dollar		109.94		111.44
Sterling Pound	161.81		165.24
EURO		141.51		144.88
Swiss Franc	90.57		93.28
Canadian Dollar	86.52		89.14
Australian Dollar	71.78		74.12
Singapore Dollar	72.88		74.63
Japanese Yen	1.1809		1.2149

(2) The approximate exchange rates of GULF Currencies, based on previous day’s market weighted average rate for the US$ are as follows:

Country		Currency		Indicative Rate

Bahrain		Dinar		292.52
Kuwait		Dinar		400.73
Oman		Rial		286.38
Qatar		Riyal		30.27
Saudi Arabia	Riyal		29.39
UAE		Dirham		30.02

(3) The Average Weighted Prime Lending Rate (AWPLR) and the Lowest Prime Rate (LPR) during the week ended 5th December, 2008 by all commercial banks were 19.58 percent and 14.00 percent respectively.

(4) The Average Weighted Deposit Rate (AWDR) of Commercial banks for the month of November, 2008 was 11.39 percent.