Currency Symbol STD (Sao Tome & Principe Dobra)

STD is the currency abbreviation for the São Tomé & Príncipe dobra, the currency for São Tomé & Príncipe. The abbreviation STD is often used for the dobra in the foreign exchange market, which is where currencies from different countries are bought, sold and exchanged.

The São Tomé & Príncipe dobra is often presented with the symbol Db, and is made up of 100 cêntimos, but inflation has made cêntimos virtually worthless.

The São Tomé & Príncipe dobra dobra replaced the country’s previous currency, the escudo, at a rate of 1:1 in 1977. The escudo used by São Tomé & Príncipe was equivalent to the Portuguese escudo and made up of 100 centavos. São Tomé & Príncipe is an island nation located on the equator just off the west coast of central Africa.

In 1977, coins were struck in cêntimos and lower denomination dobras (one, two and five dobra coins). Rampant inflation made these coins obsolete and the government created new coins in 1997 with higher denominations to keep up with rising prices. Denominations of the dobra include banknotes of 5000, 10,000, 20,000, 50,000 and 100,000 dobras as well as coins of 100, 250, 500, 1000 and 2000 dobras.

São Tomé & Príncipe was a Portuguese colony from 1470 until 1975, when it gained independence. In 2010, the dobra was pegged to the euro at a fixed exchange rate of 1 EUR to 24,5000 STD. The inflation rate in São Tomé & Príncipe is at 4.5 percent.

Historically, Sao Tome and Principe’s economy was largely dependent on the production and export of cocoa beans, but because of a drought in the region, exports of cocoa beans have declined in recent years. Other local agricultural exports from the country include coffee and palm oil and the country is actively investing in its tourism industry.

Additionally, there is a nascent oil sector in the Gulf of Guinea which the nation is developing in conjunction with its neighbor Nigeria. The new oil fields could help boost the country’s economy and attract new rounds of foreign investment. However, analysts do not expect production of oil to start until after 2020.

The country, as of 2017, had a GDP of $372 million, but with limited local production. As a result, Sao Tome and Principe relies heavily on imports for everything from food to fuel and manufactured goods. Because of this, domestic prices are very sensitive to international price fluctuations. The one exception to this is oil prices, which are fixed.