Capital Intelligence announced last week that it had withdrawn the sovereign credit ratings of Syria because of a lack of interest from its clients.

All stocks traded at the Damascus Securities Exchange fell again last week with the total value of shares falling more than 50 percent compared to the previous week.

The volume of trading slightly rose last week at the Syrian bourse although stock prices continued their decline.

The governor of the Central Bank of Syria has denied press reports that Syria was printing money to finance its deficit, claiming that new banknotes would enter the market to replace worn-out bills.

Syrian stocks fell for the fifth week running with the Damascus Securities Exchange’s main index shedding 0.61 percent.

Trading in the Damascus Securities Exchange last week remained very low with investors continuing to flee the market.

The aggregate balance sheet of Syria’s private sector commercial banks rose 13.4 percent on a quarterly basis in the first three months of this year thanks to a surge in the assets of Syria International Islamic Bank.

Nazareth Yacoubian has been elected to sit on the Board of Directors of Syria Gulf Bank in replacement of Issam Anbouba.

The appointment of Nabil Hshaimeh as chief executive officer of Banque Bemo Saudi Fransi, Syria’s largest private sector conventional bank, has been confirmed by the Central Bank of Syria.

Updated June 03, 2012: Syria International Islamic Bank, an institution with Qatari strategic shareholders and that saw its assets jump 85 percent in the last quarter alone, was added to a list of companies under sanctions by the US Treasury, leading to the resignation of all its Board members.

The week at the Damascus Securities Exchange was marked by the inclusion of Syria International Islamic Bank in a list of companies under sanctions by the United States and by a general decline in stock prices.

The Damascus Securities Exchange's main index, the DWX, closed at 872.23 on May 23, a weekly decline of 0.17 percent, with trade volumes slightly rising.

The Central Bank of Syria has licensed a new foreign exchange company under the name of Al-Jadda with a capital of SYP 250 million.

A new company is set to enter the Damascus Securities Exchange in spite of the fact that the market continues to attract only little investment.

The Syrian Pound is remaining stable in the local currency market as the Central Bank of Syria gradual pushes its official rate closer to the black market level.