BAKU, Azerbaijan, July 31.The Azerbaijani
banking sector's structural liquidity surplus, excluding required
reserves, reached 6 billion manats ($3.53 billion) at the end of
the first half of 2026, more than doubling from the end of
December, the Central Bank of Azerbaijan (CBA) said.
The structural liquidity surplus, defined as the difference
between the Central Bank's liabilities to the banking system and
its claims on banks, increased 2.1 times compared with December
2025, according to the CBA.
The Central Bank said it continues to apply monetary policy
instruments in line with developments in financial markets and
banking system liquidity. Short-term unsecured money market rates
remain within the Central Bank's interest rate corridor.
The average daily AZIR rate stood at 6.43% in May and June 2026
and at 6.39% during the period elapsed in July.
The CBA said the banking sector's high level of structural
liquidity surplus indicates that banks have substantial lending
capacity.
To manage liquidity, the Central Bank primarily uses seven-day
deposit operations, which accounted for 84.3% of its open market
sterilization portfolio at the end of June. The regulator also
continues to hold regular auctions of its notes.
Over the past three months, yields on Central Bank notes across
all maturities, as well as the medium- and long-term segments of
the yield curve, have declined.
Interest rates on newly attracted manat-denominated term
deposits also fell in June 2026 compared with July 2025, when the
Central Bank lowered its key policy rate, the statement said.
