Skopje, 26 April 2025      

Despite the period of exceptional crisis, through meaningful and good policies and timely measures, the National Bank has played a significant role in preserving the economic stability and strengthening its resilience.  These achievements and further challenges were discussed at the series of meetings held by the Governor of the National Bank Anita Angelovska Bezhoska, within the Spring Meetings of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank, in which she participated together with the Minister of Finance, Gordana Dimitrieska Kochoska and their teams.

The enhanced resilience is reflected in the growth of foreign reserves which are around 40% higher compared to the pre-crisis period, largely due to the solid foreign direct investment inflows. They not only have a short-term positive impact on the economic activity, but also increase the long-term growth potential of the economy.   In 2024, they reached 7.1% of GDP, one of the highest levels of foreign direct investment in our country.

At the meetings with the Director of the European Department at the IMF, Alfred Kammer, the Executive Director Jeroen Click, the Deputy Executive Director Marnix van Rij, and the Mission Chief Annette Kyobe, it was also assessed that the banking system resilience has increased, which is evident through the significant increase in the capital position, enabling solid credit growth.   “Our banking system achieved the largest growth in the capital adequacy in the region, but also in comparison with the EU countries.

“The external environment remains unpredictable and unfavorable, which can be seen in the latest IMF forecasts which have revised the global growth downwards, while the disinflation process is expected to be slower.  Risks to the global situation are also predominantly downward, due to the trade wars and unpredictable trade policies.  In such circumstances, as a central bank, we will be further consistent with our policies for maintaining economic stability, taking into account the global uncertainty and domestic challenges.  Our goal is clear-a stable exchange rate and price stability as a foundation for sustainable economic growth”, said the Governor.

The meeting also discussed the latest IMF World Economic Outlook, according to which the global inflation will further decline to 4.3% in 2025 and 3.6% in 2026, (minor upward revision by 0.1 percentage point each since the January outlook).  The decrease will still be faster in the advanced economies, while developing countries and emerging economies will face a slightly slower convergence towards the objectives. The IMF recommends prudent economic policies, emphasizing structural reforms that will support long-term stability.

At the Spring Meetings, the Governor was accompanied by the Vice Governors Fadil Bajrami and Ana Mitreska.