The street price of the US dollar dropped slightly in key towns in South Sudan's Central Equatoria State today in spite of fighting near oil fields in Upper Nile State.

According to a trader in Juba, the price of the dollar is now between 9 and 10 pounds. This compares to a higher rate reported in Juba on Monday. The price of the dollar has also dropped slightly in Nimule where the rate yesterday was about 10.7 SSP but today reached about 9 SSP.

It remains unclear whether central bank authorities have signalled to the foreign exchange market the possibilty of an imminent injection of US dollars into the inter-bank market for foreign exchange or the price of the dollar dropped for other reasons.

The market may also have been reacting to an announcement that parliament would investigate the letter of credit system and possibly introduce changes to the system.