Central Bank Head: Credit Demand Must Rise to Boost Lending
Azerbaijan Central Bank Governor Taleh Kazimov said banks have 4.6 billion manats in free funds available for lending, but increased credit demand is needed to expand lending.
At a press conference on the monetary policy decision, Central Bank of Azerbaijan Governor Taleh Kazimov said the country's banks currently have 4.6 billion manats in free funds they could channel into lending. He noted that expanding lending requires not only lower interest rates but also increased demand for credit. Kazimov said it is still too early to fully assess the effects of the September cut to the lower bound of the interest rate corridor, though activity in the interbank market has picked up. He said the goal of the recent decision is to boost interbank market activity and reduce the Central Bank's market involvement. He described volatility in the AZIR indicator as a temporary phenomenon.
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