As of the end of 2024, Mongolia’s foreign currency reserves reached an all-time high of USD 5.5 billion. However, the current reserves stand at approximately USD 4.9 billion.

On average, exchange rate fluctuations tend to occur at certain times of the year, particularly in September and October when business activities increase, and during the Lunar New Year when demand rises. Recently, factors such as increased outbound tourism and automobile imports have also contributed to these fluctuations. Additionally, the seasonal slowdown of certain mining operations has led to a reduced inflow of foreign currency.

The Bank of Mongolia reported that it has fulfilled all foreign currency purchase orders from commercial banks in full and that operations remain stable.

As of February 10, 2025, the official exchange rate of USD announced by the Bank of Mongolia was MNT 3,455.89.

Breastfeeding rates in Mongolia have been declining, according to survey results released by the country's health ministry on Tuesday.

The Ministry of Health and the National Center for Public Health, with support from UNICEF, conducted the VI National Survey on the Nutritional Status of the Population in 2023-2024 to assess and improve the nation's nutritional status.

The survey included more than 16,000 people from all 21 provinces of Mongolia, including about 2,800 children under the age of 5.

It revealed that the percentage of newborns receiving colostrum immediately after birth has decreased from 96.7 percent in 1999 to 87.4 percent in 2024.

Additionally, the proportion of children exclusively breastfed for up to six months has dropped significantly, from 93.4 percent in 1999 to 59.6 percent in 2024.

The survey also found that seven out of 10 children aged six to 23 months in Mongolia are not eating properly. Half of these children are not consuming the right variety of foods at the right frequency for their age, and 31.8 percent do not eat fruits and vegetables at all.

The NNS V “Nutritional Status of the Population of Mongolia” was conducted six years ago, in 2016-2017, by the Department of Nutrition (currently known as Department of Nutrition and Food Safety) in cooperation with relevant organizations and departments. Based on the results and conclusions of this survey, improvements were made to the legal framework for enhancing the nutritional status of the population, fostering interdisciplinary cooperation, increasing the supply and consumption of healthy and nutritious food, and implementing multifaceted measures to intensify information dissemination, monitoring, and evaluation. These measures were carried out with the financial and technical support of the state and local budgets as well as international donor organizations. For instance, to support and protect breastfeeding, promote healthy eating, and prevent and control nutrition-related disorders, including micronutrient deficiencies specifically among young children and women, several laws were enacted: the “Law on Iodizing Salt and Preventing Iodine Deficiency” in 2013, the “Law on Fortified Food” in 2018, the “Law on Food for Infants and Young Children” in 2017, and the “Law on Food Production and Services of Secondary Schools” in 2019. Programs, procedures, instructions, and recommendations related to these laws have been implemented to achieve their objectives. Therefore, to evaluate the results and effectiveness of policies, programs, procedures, and instructions implemented since 2016 in the field of improving the nutritional status of children and women; to study the effects of poverty and economic crises on the nutritional status of the population; and to analyze the correlation between household socio-economic status and food insecurity, we conducted the VI National Nutrition Survey, “Nutritional Status of the Population of Mongolia”.

See the full version at https://www.unicef.org/.../nutrition-status-population...

Author(s)

Ministry of Health, National Center for Public Health, UNICEF Mongolia

Publication date

February 2025

Languages

English

Mongolia has been ranked 114th out of 180 countries in the 2024 Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI), Transparency International (TI) Mongolia announced on Tuesday.

Despite maintaining a CPI score of 33 points in both 2023 and 2024, Mongolia moved up seven places in the global ranking compared to the previous year.

The CPI evaluates 180 countries and territories based on perceived levels of public sector corruption, using a scale from 0 (highly corrupt) to 100 (very clean).

Published annually by the non-governmental organization TI, the index assesses corruption based on factors such as bribery, misuse of public funds, abuse of public office for personal gain, and nepotism in civil service.

Denmark topped the 2024 index with a score of 90, maintaining its position as the least corrupt country, while South Sudan ranked last with a score of 8, reflecting severe corruption challenges.

Mongolia hired banks for potentially its first dollar bond sale since being upgraded by rating firms last year as it seeks to tap robust global demand for riskier debt early in 2025.

The junk-rated sovereign is planning a deal with a five- and possible 10-year tenor, according to people with knowledge of the matter. If the government proceeds to price the debt, it would be its first in the US-dollar bond market in about 14 months, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

Mongolia has become a rare speculative-grade rated sovereign issuer in emerging Asia in recent years as other past borrowers such as Pakistan have had to seek financial assistance from the International Monetary Fund. All the three major international credit rating firms have raised Mongolia’s credit scores since September, with Moody’s Ratings the latest to do so in November.

Moody’s cited an uptick in mineral revenues and a track record of effective debt management when it upgraded Mongolia’s credit assessment one notch to B2, five levels below investment grade.

The nation also plans to repurchase a $566 million bond due in April of next year and a $650 million note maturing in January 2028, according to the people familiar, who asked not to be identified because the information is private. Both bonds are trading above their issue prices.

Average spreads on Asian high-yield dollar bonds are near their tightest in more than six years at 411 basis points, according to a Bloomberg index.

Still, the guage, which has returned 0.5% so far this year, is underperforming global peers as concerns about Chinese property developers flare up again and US President Donald Trump’s tariffs plans unsettle markets. The region’s notes returned 15% last year, in their best annual performance in 12 years, the data show.

Of 20 major Bloomberg fixed-income indexes emerging-market dollar bonds and global high-yield debt are the two best performing so far this year, returning 1.5% and 1.4% respectively, the data show. The bigger spread cushions on the notes give them greater room to absorb volatile moves in Treasuries.

On February10, in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, H.E. Mr. IGAWAHARA Masaru, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Japan to Mongolia, and H.E. Sandag BYAMBATSOGT, Minister of Defence of Mongolia , signed and exchanged notes for 1.3 billion yen in “Official Security Assistance (OSA)” FY 2024 project.

Japan and Mongolia share fundamental values such as freedom, democracy and rule of law, cooperating in security and various other areas under the "Special Strategic Partnership for Peace and Prosperity."

The project will provide the Mongolian Air Force with an air traffic control radar system and related equipment. It is expected to strengthen the situational awareness and air traffic control capabilities of the air force. The project will contribute to ensuring security and safe use of the airspace based on the rule of law in Mongolia and throughout the region.

Japan Air Self-Defense Force and Mongolian Air Force have conducted defense cooperation and exchanges over years. They include capacity building project on air traffic control, which are currently being implemented and expected to have synergistic effects with this OSA project.

(Reference)

OSA is a grant aid cooperation framework which provides equipment and supplies as well as assistance for the development of infrastructures to armed forces and other related organizations of recipient countries. By enhancing their security and deterrence capabilities, OSA aims to strengthen our security cooperation with the recipient countries, to create a desirable security environment for Japan, and to contribute to maintaining and strengthening international peace and security.