It Is Time For The Management Of The National Bank To Make An Appointment With An Ophthalmologist

13.08.2025, 15:13
3,782

The agency did not see inflation.

Inflation in Belarus rose to 7.4% in annual terms in July. This is despite the fact that July and August are the traditional season of low prices. However, according to the head of the National Bank Roman Golovchenko, there are no problems with price growth in the country, and no intervention is required. Although in late June, the National Bank still saw some problems, writes "Belarusians and the market".

The current inflation rate is almost one and a half times higher than the 5% promised by the government for this year. There is no sign that inflation will voluntarily return to the limits allotted to it and is not expected. Even the decline in prices for seasonal fruits and vegetables has not been able to move annual inflation downward.

At best, inflation may fall by a tenth of a percentage point in August. But August will be followed by the fall, the beginning of the heating season and the traditional acceleration of price growth. So we can forget about the promised 5% already now. In the best case, prices will rise by nine percent at the end of the year.

But the head of the National Bank is not worried about it and advises us.

"So far, the situation does not cause, so to speak, special alarm for us. We do not see the need to adjust urgent measures of monetary policy," said Golovchenko in an interview with Belarusian TV.

At the same time, he clarified that the National Bank is not going to raise the refinancing rate in the near future, and maybe even lower it quite the opposite. Although on June 25, the National Bank just raised the refinancing rate, doing it for the first time since March 2022. Then the regulator explained the rate increase by inflation risks and growing imbalances in the Belarusian economy. A month and a half passed, and the risks disappeared, while imbalances suddenly dissipated.

And how could they not dissipate. On Tuesday, at a meeting with Golovchenko, Alexander Lukashenko again explained to the head of the National Bank that banks should give more money to the economy. Because banks do not need extra money.

"There should not be "extra" money in banks, and the profit is still from those who keep this money there. That's basically the way it is. That's why I'm on board with this plan and I really hope that's the case. The economy should develop, and the banking system should contribute to the growth of the economy," said Lukashenko.

In the course of the meeting Lukashenko and Golovchenko discussed an advanced idea not to agonize with loans and subsidies, but to simply withdraw excess profits from banks. Because the banks will spend their money on something stupid anyway.

The government is another matter. The government is always willing to spend other people's money on something useful. For example, on a giant new pig farm, another bus factory, or a second nuclear power plant.

Because GDP growth plans won't fulfill themselves. The government knows this for a fact. It tried it, and nothing good came out of it. The Belarusian economy has grown by only 2% for six months, although it should have grown by 4%. Therefore, the Belarusian economy needs, of course, new stimuli. And financial stability is on the back burner.

Although everything can still change. And very soon. Because, as practice shows, consistency is definitely not a virtue of the new leadership of the National Bank. The previous time the head of the National Bank said on June 12 that the Belarusian economy didn't need any increase in the refinancing rate. Less than two weeks before the National Bank decided to raise the rate. So, perhaps, Roman Golovchenko is just too busy with important matters to go into all these minor monetary details.

PATREON Support the website

Write your comment 3

It Is Time For The Management Of The National Bank To Make An Appointment With An Ophthalmologist

Follow Charter97.org social media accounts

Interview

Opinion