The improvement in Montenegro's credit rating is a satisfaction for foreign investors and an indicator that the country is on the right track, announced Finance Minister Novica Vuković and added that public finances are stable, and revenues so far are above the plan and level from last year.
In an interview with the Mina-business agency, Vuković, commenting on the latest report by the Standard & Poor's (S&P) credit agency, in which the prospects for Montenegro have improved, said that this information is extremely important for the country and its citizens.
"The new credit rating of the S&P agency is B+ with a stable outlook, and this is the second move that Montenegro has received from that agency in the last ten months. In the end, it somehow confirms that we are on the right track when it comes to economic policies and development processes that we implemented in the previous ten months," said Vuković.
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This, as he stated, is also a satisfaction for all foreign investors and for investors who are already doing business in Montenegro.
"This is an indicator that Montenegro is becoming a predictable and stable environment," said Vuković.
Commenting on the state of the budget for the first seven months of this year, Vuković announced that one can talk about stable public finances.
"We are talking about the full liquidity of the budget, that is, about EUR 600 million of liquid funds that are in the state treasury. The growth of income alone, which is already becoming a constant, leads to the fact that we have a surplus of EUR 42 million, which compared to the planned deficit, which was over EUR 178 million, is something that is very encouraging," Vuković said.
When asked if he is satisfied with the revenue side of the budget, considering the worse winter season, as well as the summer, which did not fully justify expectations, Vuković replied that at the moment he is satisfied with the revenue side.
"Specifically, we have revenues at the level of 1,57 billion euros. This tells us that the revenues are higher by about 125 million compared to the same period of the previous year, that is, about 95-96 million compared to the plan according to the Budget Act", specified Vuković.
He noted that the season is still going on and that the dynamics of income from day to day shows a positive trend.
Vuković also recalled the strong growth in income last year, based on short-term, i.e. one-time income.
"Those one-time revenues were from hedging arrangements, then direct support from the European Union (EU) for budget spending, as well as from economic citizenship. We now have a stable income. So, we have regular incomes that are based on economic activity, employment, disposable income, and at the same time we suppressed the gray economy. And this is especially noticeable when we talk about the labor market," Vuković explained.
The government recently adopted a technical rebalancing, and speaking about the possibility of another rebalancing by the end of the year, Vuković said he did not believe there would be one.
"All the indicators are such that we really took into account the macroeconomic environment and all the budget needs that were recorded by the end of the year. The rebalancing has started in the parliamentary procedure, so we believe that this will be the only rebalancing this year," said Vuković.
Vuković said that he expects that by the end of next week the parliament will adopt a set of laws necessary for the implementation of the Europe Now 2 program.
"This would mean that citizens, depending on the dynamics of salary payments, or whether they are paid on the last day of October or the first day of November, can certainly expect an increase in their salaries," said Vuković.
He added that the Government worked diligently to implement the Europe Now 2 program in the first ten months of this year, i.e. a year since this administration began its work.
According to Vuković, the Europe Now 2 program has been finalized and now everything is up to the members of parliament.
When it comes to the decision to limit margins on around 70 food and hygiene products, he said that the Government is fighting inflation through two instruments of economic policy. According to him, on the one hand, it is an increase in the minimum and average wages, through a reduction in the burden on employers, and on the other, a reduction in margins on products.
"That action covers more products, a total of 71. To that should be added the prices of electricity, which in addition to all the mentioned aspects, ensures a better standard of citizens", said Vuković.
He visited that Montenegro is a small and import-dependent economy, which makes it particularly sensitive when it comes to inflation. "Import dependence is the main factor affecting inflation, but the latest data for June and July, when it was 4,1 percent and 3,5 percent respectively, show its downward trend," said Vuković.
He said that the plan of this government is to create a successful economic environment in terms of investment, tax and any other sense.
"We have to think at least in the medium term and prepare Montenegro for the environment of the united, that is, the EU market. "Montenegro as the 28th member of the EU, which was confirmed by the new finding of the S&P credit agency that we are on the right track, indicates that the measures taken are making our country receptive, competitive, interesting for investors and the opening of the labor market," announced Vuković. .
He added that everything foreseen in the Fiscal Strategy makes Montenegro the most competitive when it comes to tax obligations.
Vuković announced that the Government did not consider the possibility of introducing a tax on extra profit, in order to secure higher budget revenues.
"That issue has been populistly recognized from administration to administration, and at this moment it is not something we would pursue. For that, additional analyzes are needed, which, if the need arises, will be considered, but not for now," Vuković said.
Vuković also announced that the Government is nearing the end of negotiations with the World Bank (WB) regarding the conclusion of the DPL arrangement.
"It is an arrangement that has a three-year history, but for a longer period it did not develop in terms of finalizing the contract with the SB, because its request was to pass a set of laws related to the green agenda and create an environment of fiscal stability," explained Vuković.
He added that in ten months the Government managed to create an appropriate environment and pass the necessary laws, so that the signing of the arrangement has already begun.
"The amount of the loan is 80 million, and the participating partners are the OPEC Fund and the French Development Agency (AFD), so the amount is up to 180 million," said Vuković.
When it comes to the possibility of issuing a so-called retail bond, through which the state would enable citizens to place surplus funds, Vuković announced that they want to develop this product, because they recognized that there is a surplus of liquid funds on the market.
He concluded that the Government wants to encourage citizens to invest in Montenegro through retail bonds, and to place their idle liquid funds in the best way.
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