The bonds of the Republic of Serbia are officially included in the JP Morgan Index of Government Bonds of Developing Countries (GBI-EM Global Diversified Index).
The index includes government bonds denominated in the local currency, which are traded regularly, with fixed coupon rates, and which foreign investors can easily access, the Ministry of Finance announced. According to the announcement of the National Bank of Serbia, this index is one of the most frequently monitored indices of bonds issued in local currencies of developing countries.
NBS Governor Jorgovanka Tabakovic stated that we are already directly feeling the positive effects of this success on the domestic financial market.
“Demand for dinar government bonds included in the index has increased, which has led to a significant increase in their market value, and over the past two days we have recorded a strong inflow of foreign exchange from international investors. That was the most important factor that contributed to the National Bank of Serbia buying 150 million euros on the domestic foreign exchange market in the last two days, thus further strengthening the foreign exchange reserves of our country,” she pointed out.
The mentioned indices, as stated in the announcement of the NBS, will include three benchmark issues of dinar bonds, with original maturities of 7, 10 and 12.5 years, which mature in 2026, 2028 and 2032. The weight of dinar bonds in this index is, as it is stated, 0.3 percent.
The Minister of Finance, Sinisa Mali, confirmed her words by stating that “since February this year, when the inclusion in the index was announced, there has been a significant increase in turnover on the secondary market, as well as the arrival of new buyers of these bonds.”
In this way, the door is opened for better conditions for the economy, as well as for local and international investors,” stated the Minister of Finance and added that the turnover of these bonds on the secondary market in June, by the time of inclusion, increased by more than 260 percent in January, before JP Morgan released information on the date of inclusion,BiF reports.
