NBS FX reserves up by EUR 853 million in March

Gross FX reserves of the National Bank of Serbia stood at EUR 14,275.5 mn at end-March, up by EUR 852.8 mn from February.

According to the information posted on the official NBS website, this level of FX reserves covered 141% of money supply (M1) or more than six months’ worth of the country’s import of goods and services (twice the level prescribed by the standard on the adequate level of coverage of the import of goods and services by FX reserves).

Net FX reserves (FX reserves less banks’ FX balances on account of required reserves and other requirements) came at EUR 11,871.9 mn at end-March, rising by EUR 879.2 mn from a month earlier.

The March increase in gross FX reserves resulted primarily from the inflow on account of the issue of 12Y eurobond of the Republic of Serbia in euros (EUR 970.9 mn) in the international financial market at end-February. The nominal value of the bond with the longest maturity so far equalled EUR 1.0 bn at the coupon rate of 1.65% and the yield rate of 1.92%.

March net inflows in FX reserves stemmed also from donations, FX reserves management and other sources (EUR 88.1 mn in total), in addition to the mentioned sale of the eurobond. The said inflows more than covered outflows under the net government debt repayment in respect of FX loans and securities (EUR 162.6 mn), NBS activities in the domestic FX market (net effect on account of swap transactions EUR 113.0 mn) and other outflows (EUR 88.0 mn net total), according to NBS.

The March increase in FX reserves also reflected the positive effect of market factors in the amount of EUR 157.4 mn net.

Trading volumes in the IFEM amounted to EUR 468 mn in March, down by EUR 13 mn from the month before. In the first three months of 2021, interbank trading volumes reached EUR 1,525.8 mn.

In March, as from the beginning of the year, the value of the dinar against the euro remained almost unchanged. The NBS bought and sold the same amount of foreign currency in the IFEM (EUR 45.0 mn each). To maintain relative stability in the FX market, since the beginning of the year, the NBS net sold EUR 50 mn.

Narodna banka Srbije Beograd

NBS

gross FX reserves

net FX reserves

foreign-exchange reserves

Eurobonds

donations

foreign exchange reserve management

foreign currency credit

paper bond

swap transaction

foreign exchange trade

foreign exchange

value of the dinar against the euro