Dollar weakening increased Moldova's state debt by almost $60 mln
During the first month of 2026, according to the Ministry of Finance, net external financing reached a negative value, amounting to approximately -$8.57 million. Fluctuations in the exchange rate of the U.S. dollar against other currencies during this period amounted to $59.84 million. Thus, the balance of external public debt at the end of January increased by 1.07%.
However, since the government periodically returns to external creditors more than it receives, according to the payment schedule, the monthly increase in the amount of debt was not so large – it increased by “only” $51 million at the end of January.
“Not only did the government received practically nothing, but it also returned almost 3 times more than it received (it received only $4.5 million, and returned $13.1 million). As a result, the government debt should have decreased (by $8.6 million), but it increased as the dollar weakened. Even if the government receives nothing, the debt burden will grow while the dollar is falling,” says economist Volodymyr Golovatyuk.
Moreover, instead of being a source of additional revenues for the budget, foreign loans, according to the expert, become an item of expenditure, because the current budget revenues are used to repay earlier loans.
