2018/19 Budget Communication 2018_2019 BUDGET COMMUNICATION | Page 69

the prior year. With higher world oil prices, the average
price of gasoline and diesel rose by 8.9 per cent and 10.6 per
cent, respectively, following declines in the area of 10 per
cent in 2016.
Developments on the monetary and credit fronts
remained positive in the last year, with the banking sector’s
credit quality indicators improving significantly and the
domestic banks maintaining strong capital levels. Private
sector loan arrears fell by over 12 per cent in 2017 and by a
further 2.5 per cent in the first quarter of this year. Arrears
in the non-performing segment declined by over 22 per cent
last year and by an additional 0.1 per cent in the first quarter
of this year.
Interest rates were generally lower in 2017, led
by commercial mortgages with a reduction of over 1 full
percentage point to an average of 6.83 per cent. Residential
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