The leu won ground against the single currency, with the official quotation at RON 3.6691/€1, and interbank interest rates posted by commercial banks at between 15.99 and 56.05 percent for one-day deposits, with transfers at yields of up to 30 percent. Lucian Anghel, Chief Analyst of Banca Comerciala Romana (BCR), believes that without these operations by non-residents, interest rates would not have exceeded 20 percent. Banking market analysts confirm that the main factor to determine the evolution of interest rates on the market are speculations against the leu. The high level of interest on the interbank market is due, in a proportion of 60 percent, to speculations against the national currency, while the remaining 40 percent is due to the structural liquidity crisis, said Bancpost Vice President, Lucian Isar.
“The effect of higher than usual transactions was felt, but interest rates evolved naturally for this liquidity-squeeze period. There are also speculators who benefitted from these operations, but mostly there were losers,” said Isar for Business Standard.
The thirst for lei led to an explosion of interbank market interest rates, including yesterday, when the Governor warned that disfunctionality of the money market is temporary, and banks should not rush to pass on higher costs of the interbank market to their clients. In spite of major growth of interest rates, local banks are not willing to offer lei to speculators who have bet on the currency’s depreciation. “Lei were in demand and these could not be found on the market. There will be no immediate drop below the lombard rate, because banks who were prudent and did not look for market quotations are not going to give themselves this advantage. Nevertheless, these interest rates do not have a long life, but rather are temporary,” insisted Isarescu.
