The Board of Directors of the Central Bank of the Republic of Azerbaijan left all parameters of the interest rate corridor unchanged on June 24, 2026, citing the stabilization of actual and forecast inflation within the target range alongside the geopolitical situation, trends in global financial markets and the domestic macroeconomic environment. The Central Bank of Azerbaijan said short-term unsecured money market rates continued to form within the corridor close to the discount rate, with the average daily AZIR at 6.43-6.44% since end-March 2026, and that in conditions of excess liquidity it has mainly used 7-day deposit operations, which accounted for 88.7% of the sterilization portfolio for open market operations at end-May. Annual inflation was 5.6% in May 2026 and core inflation was also 5.6%, while the dollarization of resident individuals’ deposits fell by 2.8 percentage points over the last 12 months to 27%. In the foreign exchange market, supply exceeded demand in the first five months of 2026, prompting the central bank to conduct a buying intervention as banks’ demand at currency auctions fell, and foreign exchange reserves rose by USD1.2 billion, or 10.4%, to USD12.7 billion; customs data also showed a USD7.2 billion trade surplus in January-May 2026, and the central bank expects the current account surplus forecast for end-2026 to improve further. It said external inflation risks have increased as world food and fertilizer prices, transport and logistics costs,
Central Bank of Azerbaijan2026-06-24
Central Bank of the Republic of Azerbaijan leaves interest rate corridor unchanged
The Central Bank of Azerbaijan left all parameters of the interest rate corridor unchanged on 24 June 2026, citing stabilization of actual and forecast inflation within the target range despite higher external inflation risks from global food, fertilizer, transport and exchange rate pressures. It said annual and core inflation were both 5.6% in May, foreign exchange reserves rose by USD1.2 billion to USD12.7 billion after a buying intervention in January to May, and future corridor decisions will depend on the inflation outlook, macroeconomic dynamics, global scenarios and banking sector liquidity.