The National Bank’s board increased interest rates on overnight loans and deposits to 23.50% and 19.50% per annum, respectively. It also decided to increase the base rate on main short-term monetary policy operations to 21.50%.

Reserves requirements for Moldovan lei and non-convertible currencies also rose: to 37% for August 16 - September 15, and for September 16 - October 15, to 40%.

For freely convertible currencies, reserve requirements rose to 42% and 45% for the periods above.

According to the NBM, the decision will stimulate savings to the detriment of consumption, balance the trade balance and contain inflationary expectations. At the same time, the adopted monetary policy measures will support the decrease of the consumer price index starting from the fourth quarter. “There is a high probability that the adopted measures will complete the tightening phase of the monetary policy if there are no major unanticipated shocks in the immediate period ahead. Once the future projections outline substantiated prerequisites for the relaxation of the monetary policy, the NBM will adopt the necessary measures to bring inflation back closer to the 5% target”, the central bank said in a press release.