U.S. dollar is the official currency of the United States of America. Bank code - USD. Denoted by the $ sign. 1 dollar equals 100 cents. Denominations of banknotes in circulation: 100, 50, 20, 10, 5, 2 (a relatively rare banknote), 1 dollar, as well as coins of 1 dollar, 50, 25, 10, 5 and 1 cent. In addition, there are banknotes in denominations of 500, 1,000, 5,000, 10,000 and 100,000, which were previously used for mutual settlements within the Federal Reserve System, but have not been issued since 1945, and since 1969 have been officially withdrawn from circulation, since they were replaced by an electronic payment system. The name of the monetary unit, according to the most common version, comes from the medieval coin thaler, minted in Germany.
Traditionally, the obverse side of the US dollar depicts the presidents and politicians of the United States. On modern banknotes, these are Benjamin Franklin - 100 dollars, Ulysses Grant - 50, Andrew Jackson - 20, Alexander Hamilton - 10, Abraham Lincoln - 5, Thomas Jefferson - 2 and George Washington - 1 dollar. The reverse side depicts historical monuments: 100 dollars - Independence Hall, where the Declaration of Independence was signed, 50 - the Capitol, 20 - the White House, 10 - the US Treasury, 5 - the Lincoln Memorial in Washington. The $1 note has a special design on the back, consisting of a double-sided image of the so-called Great Seal of the United States, used to authenticate government-issued documents and held in Washington.
It is believed that in order to counteract the printing of counterfeit dollars, the design must be changed at least once every 7-10 years. At the same time, absolutely all US banknotes issued since 1861, when money was first issued in paper form, are legal tender in the United States.
For the first time, the decision to issue US dollars was made by Congress in 1786, and in 1792 they became the main settlement currency of the state. Since 1796, the principle of a bimetallic monetary unit has been introduced, that is, both silver and gold coins were minted. At the same time, each time, as a result of a change in the ratio of prices for two precious metals, either one or the other coins disappeared from circulation. Until 1857, foreign money (primarily Spanish pesos and later Mexican dollars) also served as legal tender in the United States.
In 1900, the gold standard was passed. At this point, 1 dollar corresponded to 1.50463 grams of pure gold. In 1933, it was devalued by 41% for the first time as a result of the Great Depression. A troy ounce of gold was worth $35.
At the end of World War II, as a result of the Bretton Woods agreement, the dollar became the only monetary unit that was exchanged for gold, while the rates of other world currencies were tied to the US. At the same time, in the post-war years, the United States became Europe's main creditor. Thus, the US dollar became the world's accounting currency and took its place in the reserves of central banks.
However, by 1960, the chronic deficit of the US budget led to the fact that the amount of dollars owned by creditors around the world exceeded the size of the gold reserve. The crisis of 1969-70 complicated the situation. As a result, in 1971, the exchange of dollars for gold was finally terminated after a corresponding statement by President Richard Nixon.
During the 1970s, the dollar depreciated. The situation was aggravated by the crisis of 1975-76. In 1976, as a result of an international agreement, a new one was created - the Jamaican monetary system, which finally legalized the rejection of the gold backing of currencies.
The strengthening of the dollar in the 1980s put US manufacturers at a disadvantage relative to other countries. As a result, it was decided to devalue the dollar by cutting interest rates. And by 1991, the exchange rate had actually been halved against the Japanese yen, the pound, and the German mark.
In 1992, as a result of the fall of the British pound and the crisis in Europe, the dollar rose by almost 30%, but from April 1993 its quotes began to decline again - until 1998, when there was a significant weakening of the dollar against the Japanese yen - from 136 up to 111 within three days. This was due to the massive repatriation of funds from Japanese investors as a result of the crisis in the markets of developing countries, including the default in Russia.
1999-2001 - a period of new strengthening of the US dollar, which was stopped by the Federal Reserve, which lowered interest rates to 2% in order to stimulate the economy.
The most important event for the dollar was the creation in 1999 of a single European currency, into which the central banks of many creditor countries of the United States transferred part of their reserves.
For the summer of 2011, the US dollar is quoted in the range of 1.40-1.46 dollars per euro, 76-78 Japanese yen per dollar and 1.62-64 dollars per pound.
Despite competition from the euro, today the United States currency occupies a leading position in the reserves of central banks. In addition, it remains the main settlement currency between countries in international trade, and is also the base for settlements through payment systems using plastic cards outside the European Union zone, where the euro prevails.
The US dollar is the main currency of the Forex market. Transactions are carried out through this currency and the main quotes are set.
Experts' opinions regarding the future dollar are diametrically opposed. On the one hand, many believe that the collapse of the dollar financial system is inevitable in the near future due to the huge external debt of the United States, the largest in the world. For the summer of 2011, it exceeds $14.5 trillion.
On the other hand, the stability of the dollar is based on high economic indicators. The US economy ranks first in terms of gross domestic product, outpacing China, which is in second place, by almost two to one. In addition, the high exchange rate of the dollar is facilitated by the monetary policy of the Federal Reserve System, as well as the faith of investors who keep their assets in US currency and during crises seek to convert them into dollars, finding refuge in US debt instruments from the elements of a market economy.
TASS-DOSIER. In 2015, the main fluctuations in the exchange rate of the ruble against the dollar and the euro were associated with changes in oil prices. In total, according to the results of the year, the Russian currency depreciated against the dollar by 29.7%, against the euro - by 16.5%.
The fall of the ruble in January-February
As of January 1, 2015, the Central Bank of the Russian Federation set the dollar exchange rate at 56.24 rubles, the euro at 68.37 rubles. On January 13, on the first day after the end of the New Year holidays, due to the continued fall in the cost of oil on the world market, the Central Bank fixed the dollar exchange rate at around 62.73 rubles. (growth 11.53%), euro - 74.35 rubles. (an increase of 8.74%), after which the Russian currency continued to fall in price. The peak of the fall of the ruble at the beginning of 2015 occurred on February 3, when the Central Bank set the dollar rate at 69.66 rubles. and euro - 78.79 rubles.
Ruble strengthening in spring and summer
The Russian currency began to strengthen at the end of February. The peak of ruble appreciation in 2015 was in April-May. On April 17, the euro fell to 52.9 rubles. On May 20, the US dollar was worth 49.18 rubles.
The Bank of Russia attributed the strengthening of the ruble to the stabilization of world oil prices, the completion of the peak of payments on external debt, an increase in the key rate, a more even sale of foreign exchange earnings by exporters, and the development of foreign exchange refinancing instruments.
On May 14, 2015, for the first time since the summer of 2014, the Central Bank of the Russian Federation began buying foreign currency on the domestic foreign exchange market (on average, 200 million dollars and euros per day). In total, until July 28, inclusive, the regulator bought 10 billion dollars and euros each, after which it stopped interventions.
New fall of the ruble
From early June to mid-July, oil prices were stable. The dollar fluctuated at the level of 52-55 rubles, and the euro - 60-62 rubles. However, the subsequent fall in oil prices, caused by investors' fears of an oversupply on the market, as well as instability in the stock markets of China and the devaluation of the yuan on August 11, led to the weakening of the Russian currency.
A sharp fall in the exchange rates of the ruble occurred on August 24 following the fall in Brent oil quotations below $50 per barrel. On August 25, 2015, the Central Bank of the Russian Federation set the dollar exchange rate at 70.75 rubles. (for the first time in history, the rate of 70 rubles was exceeded), the euro - 81.15 rubles.
In September-November, the exchange rate of the American currency stabilized at the level of 65-67 rubles, in mid-October it even dropped to the level of 61.1 rubles.
The euro exchange rate also fell below the level of 80 rubles on August 27. In September it cost 73-76 rubles, and in October-November - 69-70 rubles.
The largest exchange rate fluctuations in a year
The lowest dollar and euro exchange rates in 2015 were recorded on May 20 (RUB 49.18) and April 17 (RUB 52.9), respectively. The highest rates of the dollar and the euro are on December 31 (72.92 rubles) and August 25 (81.15 rubles), respectively.
With the exception of the depreciation of the ruble at the opening of trading after the end of the New Year holidays in 2015, the largest daily falls in the official exchange rate against the dollar were recorded on February 6 (by 4.83%, 3.16 rubles) and April 22 (by 4.16 rubles). 76%, 2.45 rubles). At the same time, the Russian currency grew the most against the dollar on April 24 (by 3.83%, 2.05 rubles) and on February 7 (by 3.74%, 2.57 rubles). In relation to the euro, the largest falls of the ruble were recorded on August 25 (by 5.85%, 4.48 rubles) and June 5 (by 4.79%, 2.83 rubles), the strongest growth was recorded on January 24 (by 5.1%, 3.87 rubles) and April 24 (by 4.5%, 2.59 rubles).
Current exchange rate
On January 1, 2016, the Central Bank of the Russian Federation set the official dollar exchange rate at 72.93 rubles. (absolute record), euro - 79.64 rubles.
The dollar exchange rate against the ruble is updated daily. If you are buying or selling currency, then you just need to follow the dynamics of the US dollar against the ruble.
USD exchange rate chart
This chart allows you to analyze the value of the dollar at the exchange rate of the Central Bank and its change over time. Frequent data updates will allow you to be aware of any movements in the market.
You can choose a period for analysis. It could be:
- a week,
- month,
- quarter,
- all the time (from July 1992 to the present).
To do this, just click on the appropriate label - the chart will be automatically rebuilt.
Export and Print Graph
The days on the graph are displayed as bold dots. When you hover over such a point in a pop-up window, you will see the date and the exact dollar exchange rate for this date at the rate of the Central Bank of the Russian Federation. In addition, the graph can be moved left-right, thereby choosing the period before and after the displayed one.
The second most popular currency in Russia is the euro. On the site you can see in the form of a graph.
The dynamics of the dollar in 2015
The dynamics of the dollar in 2015 chart
The beginning of the year (January 13, 2015) the dollar started at 62.74 rubles. By the end of spring, it dropped to 49 rubles per dollar, but in the summer it began to grow again. At the end of August, the values crept up to 71 rubles, in early autumn there was a slight decline to 61 rubles, and then, until the end of the year, the dollar rose. The year 2015 ended with a price of 72 rubles 88 kopecks per 1 dollar (as of December 31, 2015).
On January 1, 1998, as a result of the denomination, the dollar began to cost 5 rubles 96 kopecks. A day earlier, its price was 1,000 times higher - 5,960 rubles.