IMF: new two-year FCL arrangement for Poland

2013-01-23



The International Monetary Fund (IMF) on 18 January approved a successor two-year arrangement for Poland under the Flexible Credit Line (FCL) in the amount of about $33.8bn (€25.4bn).
While the Polish authorities treat the FCL as precautionary and do not intend to draw on it, the successor FCL arrangement will bolster Poland’s buffers against heightened external risks, help sustain market confidence and continue to support the authorities’ overall macroeconomic strategy, David Lipton, the IMF’s Deputy Managing Director, said in a statement.
Mr. Lipton noted that Poland had very strong economic fundamentals and policy frameworks, but with its economy feeling the effects of headwinds from the rest of Europe, growth has slowed and is projected to moderate further in 2013. And while the country’s authorities are committed to sound economic and financial policies to support growth and support the resilience of the banking system, Poland is facing heightened risks to the balance of payments, and the challenging growth environment could make it more vulnerable to external shocks.
The FCL is designed for stable countries with strong fundamentals, and offers access to credit with few strings attached.