Executive summary
In April, the broad monetary aggregate (private M3) registered a slight increase in real terms and without seasonality, with a heterogeneous behavior among its components. Interest-bearing deposits expanded, driven by fixed-term placements from Money Market Mutual Funds (FCI MM). This evolution counteracts what was observed in traditional means of payment (private transactional M2), which continued to experience a contraction. In terms of GDP; private M3 remained stable at around 13%.
The Monetary Base contracted 3% in real terms and seasonally adjusted, accumulating eight consecutive months of contraction. However, when comparing the month-end balances, it grew by $0.9 billion. The only factor of expansion was the purchase of foreign currency by the Central Bank in the foreign exchange market, which reached USD2,770 million in the fourth month of the year. This expansionary effect was partially offset by the contraction associated with the operations of the National Treasury and, to a lesser extent, the BCRA.
After two consecutive months of contraction, credit in pesos to the private sector showed a real expansion of 0.6% without seasonality. The increase was extended to most lines of credit. In terms of Output, credit in pesos remained unchanged at 9.3%. Including loans in foreign currency, which in April accumulated an increase of about USD 1,400 million, the ratio to GDP stands at 12.3%.
