Residents of Uzbekistan sold almost twice as much currency to banks as they bought.

Residents of Uzbekistan sold almost twice as much foreign currency to banks as they purchased.

Tashkent, Uzbekistan – Podrobno.uz News Agency.

In the first seven months of 2026, the supply of foreign currency on the Uzbek foreign exchange market outpaced demand. According to the Central Bank, foreign exchange sales increased by 28%, reaching $33 billion, while demand increased by 17.7%, reaching $38.2 billion.

Despite the resulting gap between supply and demand of approximately $5.2 billion, the national currency demonstrated stability. From January to July, the sum even strengthened slightly against the US dollar – by approximately 0.4%, while the dollar remained in a narrow range between 11,910 and 12,320 sums.

Businesses were the main driver of demand: legal entities purchased $30 billion of the total. At the same time, the population acted as a net seller of foreign currency, selling $14.6 billion to commercial banks and purchasing only $8.2 billion. Businesses, in turn, sold $18.4 billion to banks.

Against this backdrop, exchange rate volatility increased slightly compared to last year, averaging 32 soums, or 0.27 percent, compared to 28.2 soums, or 0.22 percent, the year before. Nevertheless, the market overall maintained a high degree of stability.

Previously, Uzbekistan allowed the purchase of up to $500 in cash currency without documentation.