2018/19 Budget Communication 2018_2019 BUDGET COMMUNICATION | Page 70

and consumer loan rates both posted declines, of almost one-
half a point, to 5.76 per cent and 13.61 per cent,
respectively.
With the Government’s foreign borrowing
activities, both bank liquidity and external reserves
expanded during the year. The latter increased by a notable
$513 million to $1.4 billion at the end of 2017.
That
amounted to some 23 weeks of total merchandise imports,
which is almost double the international benchmark.
Reserves rose by a further $189 million in the first quarter of
this year to a level of just under $1.6 billion, largely
reflecting improvement in the performance of the tourism
sector.
As for the Balance of Payments, the current
account deficit grew by some $750 million in 2017, to a
level of $1.9 billion. This reflected a deterioration in the
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