Media review for May 2, 2020

The imminent threat of coronavirus infection, the situation in the banking system, the likelihood of devaluation are the topics of today's media.

The newspaper "Azerbaijan" writes about the imminent danger of infection with coronavirus, recalling that it is too early to relax. The author recalls that the total number of people infected with the virus in the world is over 3 million, and about 300 thousand deaths.

The article talks about operational proactive measures adopted by the government. Mitigation of the quarantine regime can be tightened in case of an increase in the number of infected, the article notes. Citizens must comply with hygiene standards and the Stay Home campaign must continue.

The Azadlıqinfo website writes about the situation in the banking system. The manat deposits of the population in February-March decreased by 12% or 498 million manats. Although 161 million manat or 32% of this money was converted into foreign currency and returned to banks.

337 million manat or 68% were withdrawn from the banking system. It is very likely that this undesirable process will continue amid a significant reduction in the inflow of foreign currency into the country.

The website “Modern.az” also discusses the situation of banks. In particular, the author recalls the liquidation of the licenses of “AtaBank” and “Amrah Bank” and the appointment of a temporary administrator in “AGBank” and “NBCBank”. The author believes that this fact  increases the distrust to banks. Experts note that there are stable banks in the country, there is simply a need to change the mechanism of their work. Experts also touch on the issue of trust in banks, but this is most likely a question of trust in the state, which will insure deposits or not, but there are certain problems in this issue, experts say.

The site “Bizimyol.info.az” discusses the topic of possible devaluation. One of the reasons for this discussion was the liquidation of some banks. Experts believe that the country has conditions for devaluation, but the state does not go for it, trying to stabilize its financial policy.