The central bank Monday refunded a first tranche of over 500 million in special drawing rights (SDRs) of its 11.44 billion SDR loan from the IMF.
“The payment was completed today and I can tell you that we’ve made good profit following the operation, about half of the central bank’s profit in the first half,” Isarescu told a news conference.
Isarescu responded to media comments about possible losses Romania might sustain after repaying the loan.
In 2009, Romania and the IMF signed a two-year EUR12.95 billion loan agreement, part of a larger package of around EUR20 billion that included funds from the EU and the World Bank.
After the agreement ended in March 2011, Romania and its international partners signed a new, precautionary two-year deal for EUR5 billion. The eastern European country has not drawn any funds yet from the new agreement.