Myanmar central bank to pump $100m into easing fuel shortage

YANGON - Myanmar's junta-controlled central bank has said it will release $100-million to help struggling importers purchase fuel and oil.

The local kyat currency has plunged against the dollar since the military seized power in 2021, hitting importers' ability to pay for fuel shipments.

In recent days some residents in commercial hub Yangon have been queueing overnight outside petrol stations in the hope of obtaining fuel for vehicles.

The shortage also affects businesses and hospitals that rely on generators for power during frequent electricity blackouts in the city of some eight million.

"The Central Bank of Myanmar has arranged to provide US$100-million towards the fuel oil sector in the foreign currency market," it said in a statement on Wednesday.

It did not give details on when the funds would be released or what the exchange rate would be for the dollar.

The junta's official exchange rate is 2,100 kyat to the dollar but on the black market a greenback fetches around 6,500 kyat.

Myanmar's economy has tanked since the coup, which sparked huge pro-democracy protests that were crushed by a military crackdown.

Last December the junta launched a crackdown on fuel hoarding, with authorities threatening to jail anyone found with more than 180 litres of petrol without a licence.

The price of cooking oil, rice and staples has spiked as the kyat plummets.

Last month the central bank injected more than $16-million into the foreign exchange market "with a view to... stopping the currency devaluation," state media reported.

Inflation was expected to be around 15.5 percent for the fiscal year to next March, the Asian Development Bank said earlier this year.