Uzbek Soum Remains Stable Against US Dollar, Analyst Says

Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.uz) — The Uzbek soum remains resilient against the US dollar despite short-term exchange rate fluctuations, according to Alpari analyst Anna Bodrova.

By 16 July 2026, the US dollar had reached 12,038 soums, she said. The currency strengthened by 0.48% compared with the previous week, after little change in the foreign exchange market a week earlier.

Bodrova said annual inflation in Uzbekistan accelerated to 6.4% in June from 5.5% a month earlier, while monthly consumer price growth stood at 0.6%. The main driver was higher electricity, gas and fuel tariffs, although part of the inflationary pressure was offset by seasonal declines in food prices.

She also noted that the country's international reserves fell to US$63.7 billion, mainly due to lower global gold prices. At the same time, the physical volume of gold reserves continued to increase, while the structure of international reserves is shifting toward longer-term instruments.

According to Bodrova, faster inflation and the lower valuation of international reserves are exerting short-term pressure on the national currency, but these factors are largely technical in nature. She said the country's underlying fundamentals remain solid, as the Central Bank continues to increase its gold reserves, supporting the soum's long-term stability.

Bodrova forecast that the US dollar would trade in the range of 11,900-12,100 soums against the Uzbek soum during the coming week of July.