Executive summary
During the third quarter of 2000, the level of economic activity showed no signs of recovery. However, deposits continued to increase, although at decreasing rates, the international reserves of the financial system ended unchanged from the previous quarter, and interest rates were, on average, lower levels than those observed in the previous quarter.
The domestic capital market continued to operate with marked volatility after the complications observed in emerging markets at the end of May. Despite the fact that the international context was relatively favorable for the development of capital markets in emerging countries, Argentina observed difficulties in taking advantage of those conditions to the same extent as the rest of the countries in the region, due to the lack of clear symptoms of reactivation of its economy, and some uncertainty in the political sphere.
As for the banking sector, it showed a decrease in the growth rate of its intermediation level, followed by a lower growth in
deposits and observing a significant increase in its portfolio of liquid assets. In terms of quarterly profitability, the sector obtained a significant improvement – mainly as a result of the increase in net income from assets. The main solvency indicators fell slightly, influenced by a regulatory change that generated an increase in the capital requirement.
