When the Soviet Union dissolved in 1991, the peso lost much of its value with the exchange rate falling to 125 pesos to the US dollar. Recently, it has fluctuated between 23 and 25 pesos to the US dollar. In 1993, during the period of economic austerity known as the Special Period, the US dollar was made legal tender to encourage hard currency to enter the economy. The US dollar was the currency used to purchase some non-essential goods and services, such as cosmetics, and even staple kinds of food and drink.