State Banks
Condition The Lowering Of Interests
Mutuals
Prevented From Renegotiating Loans
Araya Leading
Chinchilla For PLN In Latest Poll
PUSC Party
With New Logo and Image
Arrival Of
More Charter Flights To Liberia Announced
Community Leaders Analyze Barriers To
Development in Guanacaste
State Banks
Condition The Lowering Of Interests
The public banks say they are in agreement
with reducing interest rates if and only
when the Banco Central de Costa Rica
(Central Bank) stops interfering in the
financial markets. The presidents of the
Banco Nacional (BN), Banco de Costa Rica (BCR)
and the Bancrédito, have made it clear that
the government needs to allow them
maneuvering room to lower interest rates.
Bank presidents, Álvaro Jenkins (BN), Luis
Carlos Delgado (BCR) and Álvaro Dengo (Bancrédito),
sent the message to Costa Rican president,
Oscar Arias, during a meeting held at the
Fundación Omar Dengo, where the majority of
government ministers, business leaders and
high level bank executives took part.
Luis Carlos Delgado said that the public
banks are in agreement with reducing
interest rates as the Poder Ejecutivo
(government) has asked of them, but made the
conditions clear.
One of the factors most affecting the Costa
Rican population in the last year is the
disproportionate increase in interest rates,
which increases the amount paid on loans.
The increases, according to the public
banks, coincides with the Banco Central's
participation in the exchange and savings
markets and that of the Ministerio de
Hacienda (Finance Ministry), which has run
out of money and has to issue bonds, which
strongly pressures interest rates up.
Álvaro Jenkins, president of the Banco
Nacional, reiterated the statements made by
his counterpart at the BCR, adding that the
government should reduce the current 15%
reserves that have to be met by the public
banks.
Jenkins said that the idea is that if the
public banks have to keep less money on
deposit with the Central Bank, there will be
more available for loans and would push
interest rates lower.
Costa Rican president, Oscar Arias, called,
in a way demanded, for a the public banks to
readjust debts of the micro and small
businesses. ""And not every case should be
analyzed separately, it should be a general
guideline," Arias told the bank executives.
All three bank presidents said that there is
a will to comply with the call of Arias,
however, that any change has to have the
approval of the board of directors of their
banks.
Although there was no concrete agreement
reached, the ministro de la Presidencia,
Rodrigo Arias, said that there will be talks
with the Banco Central to regulate its
intervention in the financial markets.
|
|
|
|
|
