OREANDA-NEWS. The size of the commission fee that is payable by households at a time of foreign currency purchase will be reduced to 10%. The Board of the National Bank made such decision taking into account the reduction to 10% - beginning on January 5, 2015 - in the size of the tax on stock exchange operations designed to purchase foreign currency (Resolution of the Council of Ministers of the Republic of Belarus No. 3 dated January 4, 2015) and an around 7% change in the official exchange rate of the Belarusian ruble against the U.S. dollar resulting from the trading on the floor of JSC "Belarusian Currency and Stock Exchange" on January 5, 2015.

The Government and the National Bank took these steps as part of the consistent measures package designed to normalize the situation in the financial sector of the Republic of Belarus. The simultaneous reduction in the tax on stock exchange operations designed to purchase foreign currency and the official exchange rate of the Belarusian ruble against the U.S. dollar is aimed at converging exchange rates in different segments of the foreign currency market and will not lead to an increase in the actual exchange rate of foreign currency purchase by households and enterprises.

In general, the situation in the country's foreign currency market remains stable. Currently, bank operations designed to purchase and sale foreign currency by households are conducted in the normal mode, i.e. cash foreign currency is available in sufficient volumes to most exchange offices and desks of the banks. At the same time, legal and natural persons are lately selling more than buying.

During last days of 2014 the deposit market saw a significant increase in an inflow of households' fixed-term deposits in the national currency.

Further prompt actions by the National Bank and the Government will be aimed at reinforcing positive trends in the financial market.