The World : Devaluation in Nicaragua

Nicaragua announced the devaluation of the cordoba by 41.8%, in a fresh bid to counter an economic crisis made more acute by Hurricane Joan’s devastation last month. The official rate, used for most government transactions, rose to 550 against the dollar from 320. Inflation this year is headed for about 10,000%, while per-capita incomes hover around the levels of the 1930s and 1940s. Apart from the official rate, the government allows legal brokers to change dollars at a rate that at midweek stood at 1,300 to the dollar. In the illegal black market, the rate is around 1,500 cordobas to the dollar.