“Switching from one currency to another one in mutual settlements depends on opportunities of the private sector,” the Minister of Economic Development and Trade Zavqi Zavqizoda told reporters in Dushanbe on July 14.  

According to him, a number of “successful meetings” was held with importers to discuss issues related to switching from the dollar (USD) to the national currencies (the Russian ruble and the yuan) in trade with the Russian Federation and China.  

“To-date, Tajik importers of Russian products have transferred 70% of their contracts from USD to the Russian ruble (RUB).  This is a very good indicator,” the minister noted.  

He further emphasized that CIS member nations adopted a very important document in May this year.  “This document provides for using national currencies in mutual settlements,” Zavqizoda said.  

The minister noted that the National Bank of Tajikistan is currently carrying out work on creating conditions for making mutual settlements with China in yuans.  

He added that there are various trade-and-financial mechanisms for this, including SWAP (a derivative contract through which two parties exchange the cash flows or liabilities from two different financial instruments). 

Recall, one of points of the national anti-crisis program, adopted by the Government of Tajikistan in March this year, provides for switching from the dollar to the ruble and the yuan for imports of goods from Russia and China.  

According to statistical data from the Ministry of Economic Development and Trade (MoEDT), Russia has accounted 21.4 percent of Tajikistan’s external trade turnover over the first six months of this year and China has accounted 19.1 percent of Tajikistan’s external trade turnover over the same six-month period.

Independent experts consider that there should be no problem with the transition from the dollar to the ruble, because remittances in RUB from Russia far exceed the volume of imports of Russian products.

According to them, the transition from the dollar to the yuan is more problematic.