Georgian National Bank management negotiates with int'l investment banks amid rift with West
TBILISI. Nov 19 (Interfax) - The management of the National Bank of Georgia (NBG) has met with representatives of international investment companies amid the continuing deterioration in the country's relations with the European Union and the United States over a political crisis following the parliamentary elections and a substantial depletion of Georgia's foreign currency reserves before the elections in October.
"Participants included senior executives from J.P. Morgan, Morgan Stanley , Vontobel, the Currency Exchange Fund, Bank of America, and Janus Henderson Investors," the NBG said in a statement.
"During the meeting, the NBG team provided an overview of Georgia's economic resilience, highlighting the country's strong fundamentals and financial stability," it said.
The NBG management said Georgia has maintained price stability, with inflation remaining below the 3% target for 19 consecutive months, attributing this "to the effective implementation of monetary policy."
The NBG management also met for negotiations with Francis Malige, Managing Director of Financial Institutions at the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), and George Orlov, Director of Financial Institutions for Central Asia, the Caucasus, and Turkey.
The participants explored financing opportunities from international financial institutions, it said. "We greatly value our partnership with international financial institutions, including the EBRD, which plays a crucial role in fostering Georgia's social and economic development and supporting the growth of its financial sector," the statement quoted NBG Governor Natia Turnava as saying.
As reported earlier, Georgia's foreign reserves dropped over October by 13% to $4 billion as of early November, the lowest point over the previous 28 months. Since the start of the year, Georgia's foreign reserves have dropped by 18.5%, or by $924.7 million. Throughout October, in order to maintain the national currency's exchange rate in the run-up to the parliamentary elections held on October 26, the NBG four times resorted to foreign exchange interventions totaling $213.4 million. Since the start of the year, the NBG has resorted to foreign exchange interventions seven times, selling a total of $382 million to maintain the lari.
President Salome Zourabichvili, the opposition parties, the EU and the U.S. have not recognized the outcomes of the Georgian parliamentary elections, in which the ruling party Georgian Dream was declared the winner. Brussels suspended Georgia's accession to the EU and the Georgian government's financial support and is considering the lifting of visa-free travel with Tbilisi. The U.S. has called on the Georgian government to investigate irregularities in the elections and warned that Tbilisi would have to face further consequences.
After Georgia enacted legislation on foreign agents in the spring, Washington halted a $95-million support program for Tbilisi and imposed personal sanctions on a number of the country's officials.
