Banca Naţională a României

At end-January 2006, broad money (M2) amounted to RON 85,727 million, down 0.7 percent (1.7 percent in real terms) month on month. In year-on-year comparison, broad money moved up 35.8 percent, or 24.7 percent in real terms.

Net foreign assets increased 2.3 percent to RON 46,477 million, with "Convertible currencies" going up 1.7 percent and "Gold" rising 6.7 percent as a result of gold stock revaluation.

Net domestic assets went down 4.0 percent to RON 39,250 million against the background of the 1.1 percent drop in domestic credit to RON 54,061 million.

In January, non-government credit edged up 1.6 percent (0.5 percent in real terms) to RON 61,627 million. RON-denominated loans rose 5.3 percent (4.2 percent in real terms), while foreign currency-denominated loans fell by 1.6 percent when expressed in RON (up 0.1 percent when expressed in euro).

At end-January 2006, non-government credit increased year on year by 49.1 percent (36.9 percent in real terms) on the back of the 77.3 percent surge in RON-denominated loans (62.8 percent in real terms) and the 30.3 percent growth of foreign currency-denominated loans expressed in RON (when expressed in euro, forex loans expanded by 35.2 percent).

Government credit, net, posted a negative balance of RON -7,566 million (compared to RON -6,009 million in December 2005), mainly as a result of the increase in deposits in the General Account of the Treasury.

Narrow money (M1) dropped 4.0 percent to RON 23,560 million, on account of the 3.6 percent decrease in currency outside banks (to RON 10,977 million) and the 4.4 percent decline in demand deposits (to RON 12,583 million).

Quasi-money inched up 0.6 percent to RON 62,167 million. Household savings in domestic currency rose by 1.4 percent to RON 17,214 million, accounting for 20.1 percent of broad money. In year-on-year comparison, household savings climbed 22.9 percent, or 12.9 percent in real terms.

Corporate deposits in domestic currency slipped 0.6 percent to RON 18,803 million. Time deposits went down 0.3 percent (to RON 14,285 million), restricted deposits declined by 1.4 percent (to RON 1,915 million), while certificates of deposits crept down 1.5 percent (to RON 2,603 million). At end-January 2006, corporate deposits in domestic currency rose by 60.8 percent, or 47.7 percent in real terms, over end-January 2005.

Deposits in foreign exchange of residents (natural and legal entities) grew by 1.0 percent to RON 26,150 million when expressed in domestic currency and by 2.8 percent to EUR 7,234 million when expressed in euro. In year-on-year comparison, residents' forex deposits expressed in euro jumped by 17.0 percent, household deposits in foreign exchange by 23.0 percent and corporate deposits in foreign exchange by 12.8 percent.

At end-January 2006, non-banks held government securities totalling RON 3,931 million (up 2.0 percent month on month), of which foreign exchange-denominated securities equalled EUR 174.2 million, down 4.4 percent from the previous month.