Turkey- Moody's backs Turkish Central Bank's lending rate cut
Date
4/25/2016 12:22:32 PM
(MENAFN- The Journal Of Turkish Weekly) >The Turkish Central Bank’s recent cut to overnight lending rate is likely to boost the banks’ profitability in the short term Moody’s said in its latest credit outlook report Monday.
According to the report “Given that the Turkish banks’ deposits tend to be predominantly shorter term [up to three months] compared with longer-term bank assets the banks’ lower funding costs will benefit their net interest income.”
In its last meeting the monetary policy committee of Turkey’s central bank introduced a 50 base point rate cut to overnight lending rate from 10.5 percent to 10 percent while leaving the policy rate at 7.5 percent and the overnight borrowing rate at 7.25 percent.
However the international rating agency noted that the financial fundamentals of Turkish banks were still likely to be pressured due to an economic slowdown and dependence on confidence-driven wholesale market funding.
“Furthermore given that foreign currency funding in the banking system accounts for up to 50 percent of total liabilities the Turkish lira exchange rate has a direct bearing on banks’ profitability” the report said.
“If the Turkish lira is pressured by expectations of a further interest rate reduction it could reverse the benefits to the cost of funding which are due to the rate cut” it added.
Legal Disclaimer:
MENAFN provides the information “as is” without warranty of any kind. We do not accept any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, content, images, videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information contained in this article. If you have any complaints or copyright issues related to this article, kindly contact the provider above.