Official exchange rate (LCU per US$, period average)
1960 - 2017 - PA.NUS.FCRF (Source database: World Development Indicators)
Overview
Series unique ID
PA.NUS.FCRF
Series Name
Official exchange rate (LCU per US$, period average)
Database ID
WLD_2019_WDI_v01_M
Periodicity of data
Annual
Definition long
Official exchange rate refers to the exchange rate determined by national authorities or to the rate determined in the legally sanctioned exchange market. It is calculated as an annual average based on monthly averages (local currency units relative to the U.S. dollar).
Limitations and exceptions
Official or market exchange rates are often used to convert economic statistics in local currencies to a common currency in order to make comparisons across countries. Since market rates reflect at best the relative prices of tradable goods, the volume of goods and services that a U.S. dollar buys in the United States may not correspond to what a U.S. dollar converted to another country's currency at the official exchange rate would buy in that country, particularly when nontradable goods and services account for a significant share of a country's output. An alternative exchange rate - the purchasing power parity (PPP) conversion factor - is preferred because it reflects differences in price levels for both tradable and nontradable goods and services and therefore provides a more meaningful comparison of real output.
Relevance
In a market-based economy, household, producer, and government choices about resource allocation are influenced by relative prices, including the real exchange rate, real wages, real interest rates, and other prices in the economy. Relative prices also largely reflect these agents' choices. Thus relative prices convey vital information about the interaction of economic agents in an economy and with the rest of the world.
Notes
Compliance with international resolution
API documentation
Description
See the Developer Information webpage for detailed documentation of the API
Documentation Link
https://datahelpdesk.worldbank.org/knowledgebase/topics/125589-developer-information
Series links
Series links
| Link type | Description | Link | Format |
|---|---|---|---|
| API | Data in JSON | https://api.worldbank.org/v2/countries/all/indicators/PA.NUS.FCRF?date=1960:2017&format=json | json |
| API | Data in XML | https://api.worldbank.org/v2/countries/all/indicators/PA.NUS.FCRF?date=1960:2017 | XML |
| API | Metadata in JSON | https://api.worldbank.org/v2/sources/2/indicator/pa.nus.fcrf/metadata?format=json | json |
| API | Metadata in XML | https://api.worldbank.org/v2/sources/2/indicator/pa.nus.fcrf/metadata | XML |
Geographic information
Geographic locations
| Location name | Location code |
|---|---|
| Aruba | ABW |
| Afghanistan | AFG |
| Angola | AGO |
| Albania | ALB |
| United Arab Emirates | ARE |
| Argentina | ARG |
| Armenia | ARM |
| Antigua and Barbuda | ATG |
| Australia | AUS |
| Austria | AUT |
| Azerbaijan | AZE |
| Burundi | BDI |
| Belgium | BEL |
| Benin | BEN |
| Burkina Faso | BFA |
| Bangladesh | BGD |
| Bulgaria | BGR |
| Bahrain | BHR |
| Bahamas, The | BHS |
| Bosnia and Herzegovina | BIH |
| Belarus | BLR |
| Belize | BLZ |
| Bermuda | BMU |
| Bolivia | BOL |
| Brazil | BRA |
| Barbados | BRB |
| Brunei Darussalam | BRN |
| Bhutan | BTN |
| Botswana | BWA |
| Central African Republic | CAF |
| Canada | CAN |
| Switzerland | CHE |
| Chile | CHL |
| China | CHN |
| Côte d'Ivoire | CIV |
| Cameroon | CMR |
| Congo, Dem. Rep. | COD |
| Congo, Rep. | COG |
| Colombia | COL |
| Comoros | COM |
| Cabo Verde | CPV |
| Costa Rica | CRI |
| Cuba | CUB |
| Curaçao | CUW |
| Cayman Islands | CYM |
| Cyprus | CYP |
| Czech Republic | CZE |
| Germany | DEU |
| Djibouti | DJI |
| Dominica | DMA |
| Denmark | DNK |
| Dominican Republic | DOM |
| Algeria | DZA |
| Ecuador | ECU |
| Egypt, Arab Rep. | EGY |
| Euro area | EMU |
| Eritrea | ERI |
| Spain | ESP |
| Estonia | EST |
| Ethiopia | ETH |
| Finland | FIN |
| Fiji | FJI |
| France | FRA |
| Faroe Islands | FRO |
| Micronesia, Fed. Sts. | FSM |
| Gabon | GAB |
| United Kingdom | GBR |
| Georgia | GEO |
| Ghana | GHA |
| Gibraltar | GIB |
| Guinea | GIN |
| Gambia, The | GMB |
| Guinea-Bissau | GNB |
| Equatorial Guinea | GNQ |
| Greece | GRC |
| Grenada | GRD |
| Greenland | GRL |
| Guatemala | GTM |
| Guyana | GUY |
| Hong Kong SAR, China | HKG |
| Honduras | HND |
| Croatia | HRV |
| Haiti | HTI |
| Hungary | HUN |
| Indonesia | IDN |
| Isle of Man | IMN |
| India | IND |
| Ireland | IRL |
| Iran, Islamic Rep. | IRN |
| Iraq | IRQ |
| Iceland | ISL |
| Israel | ISR |
| Italy | ITA |
| Jamaica | JAM |
| Jordan | JOR |
| Japan | JPN |
| Kazakhstan | KAZ |
| Kenya | KEN |
| Kyrgyz Republic | KGZ |
| Cambodia | KHM |
| Kiribati | KIR |
| St. Kitts and Nevis | KNA |
| Korea, Rep. | KOR |
| Kuwait | KWT |
| Lao PDR | LAO |
| Lebanon | LBN |
| Liberia | LBR |
| Libya | LBY |
| St. Lucia | LCA |
| Sri Lanka | LKA |
| Lesotho | LSO |
| Lithuania | LTU |
| Luxembourg | LUX |
| Latvia | LVA |
| Macao SAR, China | MAC |
| Morocco | MAR |
| Moldova | MDA |
| Madagascar | MDG |
| Maldives | MDV |
| Mexico | MEX |
| Macedonia, FYR | MKD |
| Mali | MLI |
| Malta | MLT |
| Myanmar | MMR |
| Montenegro | MNE |
| Mongolia | MNG |
| Mozambique | MOZ |
| Mauritania | MRT |
| Mauritius | MUS |
| Malawi | MWI |
| Malaysia | MYS |
| Namibia | NAM |
| New Caledonia | NCL |
| Niger | NER |
| Nigeria | NGA |
| Nicaragua | NIC |
| Netherlands | NLD |
| Norway | NOR |
| Nepal | NPL |
| Nauru | NRU |
| New Zealand | NZL |
| Oman | OMN |
| Pakistan | PAK |
| Panama | PAN |
| Peru | PER |
| Philippines | PHL |
| Palau | PLW |
| Papua New Guinea | PNG |
| Poland | POL |
| Portugal | PRT |
| Paraguay | PRY |
| French Polynesia | PYF |
| Qatar | QAT |
| Romania | ROU |
| Russian Federation | RUS |
| Rwanda | RWA |
| Saudi Arabia | SAU |
| Sudan | SDN |
| Senegal | SEN |
| Singapore | SGP |
| Solomon Islands | SLB |
| Sierra Leone | SLE |
| El Salvador | SLV |
| San Marino | SMR |
| Somalia | SOM |
| Serbia | SRB |
| South Sudan | SSD |
| São Tomé and Principe | STP |
| Suriname | SUR |
| Slovak Republic | SVK |
| Slovenia | SVN |
| Sweden | SWE |
| Swaziland | SWZ |
| Sint Maarten (Dutch part) | SXM |
| Seychelles | SYC |
| Syrian Arab Republic | SYR |
| Chad | TCD |
| Togo | TGO |
| Thailand | THA |
| Tajikistan | TJK |
| Turkmenistan | TKM |
| Timor-Leste | TLS |
| Tonga | TON |
| Trinidad and Tobago | TTO |
| Tunisia | TUN |
| Turkey | TUR |
| Tanzania | TZA |
| Uganda | UGA |
| Ukraine | UKR |
| Uruguay | URY |
| United States | USA |
| Uzbekistan | UZB |
| St. Vincent and the Grenadines | VCT |
| Venezuela, RB | VEN |
| Virgin Islands (U.S.) | VIR |
| Vietnam | VNM |
| Vanuatu | VUT |
| Samoa | WSM |
| Kosovo | XKX |
| Yemen, Rep. | YEM |
| South Africa | ZAF |
| Zambia | ZMB |
| Zimbabwe | ZWE |