Uzbekistan-GM venture abandons dollars for domestic car sales

GM Uzbekistan, a joint venture between General Motors and Uzbek state firm UzAvtosanoat, has begun selling all its cars in the Central Asian nation in local currency terms, but using an exchange rate far weaker than the official one. The move, ordered by the government, puts an end to a decade-long practice under which locally produced cars were sold for dollars, forcing ordinary Uzbeks to buy foreign currency on the black market.
The former Soviet republic's sum currency trades for less than half its official value on the informal market due to severe foreign exchange restrictions which businessmen say are the main obstacle to foreign investment. The switch to local currency car sales follows the death of strongman ruler Islam Karimov last year after 27 years in power. His successor, former prime minister Shavkat Mirziyoyev has taken some steps to reform the economy which is largely run along old Soviet lines.