National Bank of Georgia President Natia Turnava and Finance Minister Lasha Khutsishvili met International Monetary Fund Deputy Managing Director Bo Li during the IMF and World Bank Annual Meetings in Bangkok. The discussions focused on Georgia’s macroeconomic position, inflation pressures and efforts to maintain price stability and a sustainable fiscal position. Future monetary policy decisions will depend on how the geopolitical situation develops. The recent rise in geopolitical tensions has affected Georgia through inflation, with the deviation from the inflation target attributed largely to supply shocks, particularly higher energy prices stemming from tensions in the Middle East. Li emphasized the need to use favorable economic conditions to strengthen economic buffers and positively assessed Georgia’s accumulation of international reserves and fiscal buffers. The parties also discussed key areas of IMF cooperation and the development of a framework for future engagement.
National Bank of Georgia discusses geopolitical inflation risks and economic buffers with IMF
National Bank of Georgia President Natia Turnava and Finance Minister Lasha Khutsishvili discussed inflation risks and economic buffers with IMF Deputy Managing Director Bo Li. Georgia attributed the deviation from its inflation target largely to energy price shocks linked to Middle East tensions and said future monetary policy decisions would depend on geopolitical developments. The parties also discussed a future framework for IMF cooperation.