Public Information Notice No. 10/79

Public Information Notice: IMF Executive Board Concludes 2010 Article IV Consultation with the Republic of Croatia

June 21, 2010

On June 21, 2010 the Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) concluded the Article IV consultation with Croatia.¹

Background

The global economic and financial crisis has significantly affected the Croatian economy. With reduced capital inflows, subdued export demand, and tight credit conditions on the domestic front, real GDP fell by 5.8 percent in 2009, and unemployment rose sharply to 17 percent. While exports plunged, an even larger contraction in imports resulted in a near-halving of the current account deficit to 5 percent of GDP. The economy remained in the midst of a severe downturn in the early part of 2010, and positive growth is expected to resume gradually in the second half of the year, with a forecast for zero growth in 2010.

The authorities’ policy response to the crisis has been swift. The Croatian National Bank (CNB) appropriately addressed liquidity shortages in the banking sector in 2009 through relaxation of regulatory requirements, repo auctions, and simplification of rules for banks to access CNB’s emergency liquidity assistance. The timely policy response helped improve financial market sentiment: the kuna has fully retracted its losses, official reserves have been replenished, and bond spreads declined, which allowed the authorities to tap international capital markets twice in 2009. Liquidity pressures abated in 2009 as domestic deposits remained stable and foreign parent institutions maintained their credit lines to domestic subsidiaries.

The authorities also took strong fiscal actions in 2009 to offset plunging revenues and contain the 2009 budget deficit to financeable levels. Three supplementary budgets were adopted with a number of short-term measures that included expenditure cuts, a wage and pension freeze, a VAT rate hike, and the introduction of a temporary “solidarity tax” on incomes and pensions. These measures helped, but the fiscal deficit nevertheless widened to just under 4 percent of GDP (including the payment for a called guarantee of a public shipyard). Public debt also rose sharply to 50 percent of GDP including the guaranteed stock.

Banks have weathered the crisis relatively well owing to high capital buffers, but profitability has declined, largely reflecting an increase in the provisioning for nonperforming loans which reached 7.8 percent at end-2009. Private sector credit growth fell sharply as the uncertain macroeconomic environment lowered demand for new loans, and banks tightened underwriting standards. Concerns about the lack of credit recovery prompted the authorities to introduce earlier this year three schemes to revive credit to corporates, through loans to finance working capital as well as provision of government guarantees for investment loans. These schemes are expected to be in place until end-2010.

Executive Board Assessment

Executive Directors commended the authorities for skillfully navigating the economy through the global financial and economic crisis, as their swift intervention had helped preserve financial stability, contain the fiscal deficit, and maintain investor confidence and access to international capital markets. Directors noted the incipient recovery faces considerable downside risks given the uncertain global outlook, unsettled regional financial markets, and significant domestic economic vulnerabilities. Well-focused medium-term fiscal consolidation and ambitious structural reforms will be needed to increase competitiveness and attract investment to bring about stronger and more balanced growth.

Directors noted that the burden of demand management falls largely on fiscal policy, given the stable exchange rate policy. They agreed that a cyclically-balanced budget over the medium-term would provide needed policy room and ensure debt sustainability. Directors considered that fiscal adjustment could be best achieved through expenditure measures, including reductions in the public sector wage bill and public enterprise subsidies, rationalization of pension and health expenditure, and better targeting of social assistance expenditure. They welcomed the inclusion of many of these measures in the Economic Recovery Program (ERP), while recommending that expenditure reforms should precede the envisaged tax cuts. In addition, Directors encouraged containment of rising contingent fiscal liabilities and endorsed plans to adopt a Fiscal Responsibility Law.

While recognizing the difficult trade-offs, Directors considered that maintaining a broadly stable exchange rate provides an appropriate anchor given market volatility and high financial euroization. They emphasized the importance of structural reforms to improve competitiveness, including by removing inefficiencies in the labor market and business environment, and pursuing appropriate income and wage policies to achieve internal adjustment of the economy. Directors recommended greater flexibility in employment policies and social benefits to remove adverse incentives for labor force participation. They also observed that improving the business environment would require privatization, reduced para-fiscal fees, and simplified business entry requirements. Directors welcomed the recent introduction of reforms in many of these areas under the ERP, noting that speedy, well-sequenced and full ERP implementation would be instrumental in strengthening market confidence and assisting Croatia in entering the European Union from a position of strength.

Directors called for continued vigilant monetary and financial sector policies, as banks remain vulnerable to credit and liquidity risks. They viewed the moderate pace of monetary easing as adequate and cautioned against further easing as the financial outlook remains uncertain. While noting safeguards to prevent weakening of credit underwriting standards, Directors recommended close supervision of the quality of loans issued under the credit support measures. They expressed concerns about the recapitalization of public banks from the deposit insurance fund.