Mr. Makis Keravnos emphasized that there does not seem to be any particular concern about an increase in bad loans in Cypriot banks
The opinion that by the end of the year there will be a more balanced situation regarding inflation was expressed on Thursday by the Minister of Finance Makis Keraynos, after a meeting with the chief economist of the European Central Bank Philip Lane. He added that there does not seem to be any particular concern about an increase in bad loans in Cypriot banks.
In his statements after the end of the meeting, Mr. Keravnos spoke of a very productive exchange of views on issues that concern not only Cyprus, but also the entire EU, such as inflation, interest rate increases and the reasons that create this state of the economy.
“I listened with great interest to Mr. Lane's views on how things can develop and I think patience and an optimistic outlook are needed” , completed accordingly.
When asked if he received an update on how things will develop until the end of the year, the Minister said that based on what he discussed with the ECB official, there is an optimistic view that by the end of the year there will be a more balanced situation regarding the inflation.
In another question about whether he shared with Mr. Lane his thoughts regarding measures to support the low economic strata in terms of interest rate increases, but also non-performing loans and sales, the Minister replied that Mr. Lane is informed and he is aware of the problems of the Cypriot economy, as well as the efforts made by the Government, always in consultation with the Central Bank, on how problems that afflict the economy and society can be alleviated.
Asked if there is an intention to follow the model of the plan announced by the Minister of Finance of Greece, Mr. Keravnos said that the intention is for the Ministry to move not exactly with the same model but on the basis of the thoughts of the Greek bond of, with whom, as he said, he also met in Brussels.
“We too have similar thoughts and are working on various tools to deal with this situation”, added the Minister, adding that from his contacts to date with the managements and administrations of the banks, there does not seem to be any particular concern about an increase in bad loans because the banks themselves implement mechanisms and measures to avoid such a thing. “You realize that nobody would like to see an increase in bad loans,” he concluded.
source: CYPE
