The U.S. dollar closed at its weakest level on record against the Costa Rican colón on Friday, falling to a weighted average of 446.10 colones on the country’s wholesale foreign-exchange market. The Monex close came in 0.72 colones below Thursday’s average of 446.82 and beat the previous low of 446.80, set on Sept. 17, according to Central Bank of Costa Rica (BCCR) trading data. On Thursday, the rate had sat just 0.02 colones above that record.
Friday marked the eighth consecutive session of decline, a slide that began on Nov. 4, when the average stood at 452.01 colones. Trades ranged between 445.80 and 446.30 colones per dollar, with $49.3 million changing hands in 228 operations. The BCCR’s reference rate for Friday stood at 442.74 colones for buying dollars and 448.37 for selling. The currency had already fallen to around 448 colones earlier this week.
The dollar has now lost 50.97 colones, or 10.3%, since the first trading session of 2026 on Jan. 2, when it opened the year at 497.07. After the September low, it recovered to 460.45 on Oct. 1, then fell 3.1% in a little over six weeks. Measured against its peak of 696.76 colones on June 21, 2022, the dollar has lost 36% of its value in Costa Rica.
In practical terms, every $1,000 converted at the Monex average now yields about 446,100 colones, roughly 51,000 fewer than at the start of the year. Bank and exchange-house rates sit on either side of the wholesale average, but they have moved in the same direction. The shift cuts both ways. Households and businesses that earn in dollars and pay their bills in colones receive less local currency for each dollar, while anyone who needs dollars, whether to pay a dollar-denominated loan or to import goods, needs fewer colones to buy them.
For people living on income from abroad, the squeeze comes as lawmakers weigh a bill that would tax residents’ foreign income at 15%. Dollar debt is a significant part of the picture. Data from the General Superintendency of Financial Entities (Sugef) through August show that 62% of foreign-currency loans in the financial system go to borrowers exposed to exchange-rate risk, meaning their income is not in dollars.
A strong colón lowers those payments for now. Sugef has warned, however, that if the exchange rate rises, the ability of a significant share of those borrowers to pay could be affected. Foreign-currency lending has also been growing faster than lending in colones. Sugef figures for September show dollar loans grew 6%, compared with 2.7% for colón loans.
The Central Bank has been buying dollars as the rate falls. Through Nov. 12, it had purchased $94.9 million this month in stabilization operations, bringing its 2026 total to $1.36 billion.
On Thursday alone, the BCCR bought $13.7 million for stabilization and another $11 million to cover the currency needs of the non-bank public sector. Stabilization purchases are meant to smooth sharp swings in the rate rather than to defend a specific level. Costa Rica has operated under a managed float since February 2015. Monex began operating in November 2006, which makes Friday’s close the lowest in the platform’s two-decade history.
Trading has been heavy in recent weeks. On Oct. 27, Monex recorded $153.4 million in transactions, the largest volume since its creation. Monex trading resumes on Monday, Nov. 16, when the market will show whether the slide extends to a ninth session.
