Finance Minister: BNR experts will find a solution to stem ROBOR hike

Finance Minister Ionut Misa stated on Tuesday that experts of the National Bank of Romania (BNR) will decide on and find solutions that need to be adopted in order to temper the hike of ROBOR. Misa met with representatives of the BNR at the bank’s headquarters.

The ROBOR increase is linked to liquidity, Misa said. “The central element of the meeting was that to assess the situation on the market, what the solutions timed to liquidity are and a better blend of fiscal policies with the monetary policy the BNR makes, so that we can prevent in the future several situations that can be interpreted, although, given that the market is constantly evolving, such evolutions can take place. The solution is connected in particular to liquidity,” the Minister explained. “It is the prerogative of the BNR and BNR experts will find the solution that must be adopted to temper the ROBOR hike,” he said.

According to the Finance Minister, in the area of fiscal policy two elements must be taken into account, namely revenues and infusion of capital.

“There are two elements on the fiscal policy: the element connected to revenues, meaning an absorption of liquidities from the market and at the same time an element of infusion of capital to the market through the spending of public funds,” Misa said. “We will try to collaborate from this point of view even more than we did it so far […]. Certainly, there are solutions and, if you follow the topic, you will see that the overnight interest dropped.

ROBOR, the average interbank lending rate, stood on Monday at 1.8 percent, compared to 1.58 percent in the Friday session and compared to 0.87 percent at the beginning of the year.