Syrian pound drops sharply against US dollar: central bank

The value of the Syrian pound fell sharply by six percent over the weekend, losing ground to the dollar, the central bank in Damascus said Sunday. Economist Chadi Ahmad told AFP said the sharp drop in the exchange rate was due to growing demand by the government to use dollars to buy petroleum products overseas ahead of winter. The value of the Syrian pound has depreciated by more than 110% to the dollar since Syria's conflict erupted in March 2011.