CHISINAU, Sept 19 (Askume) – Moldova’s central bank kept its main interest rate unchanged at 3.60% for the third time in a row on Thursday, the central bank’s news agency said.
The last rate cut was in May, when the bank raised interest rates from 3.75% to 3.60%.
The Bank said its current assessment of deposit, credit and foreign exchange market conditions indicated that conditions were favourable to ensure that inflation remains close to the medium-term target of 5.0%.
The country’s statistics office said inflation stood at 5.1% in August, compared with 9.69% in the same month last year.
The bank said inflation was 0.3% higher in August than in July.
“As a result, annual inflation remains close to the 5.0% target,” the bank said in a statement.
The central bank began easing monetary policy late last year to support the economy. The next monetary policy meeting is scheduled for November 5.
Inflation in Moldova rose sharply in 2022 after Russia’s full-scale invasion of neighboring Ukraine, but has since declined. In 2023, the annual inflation rate will fall to 4.2%, compared to 30.4% in the same period last year.
