KUWAIT: Governor of the Central Bank of Kuwait (CBK) Dr Mohammad Al-Hashel affirmed the financial strength of Kuwait and the resilience of the Kuwaiti Dinar's exchange rate vis-a-vis other currencies. "Among the fundamentals of the CBK monetary policy is to maintain the stability and strength of KD exchange rate," Dr Hashel said on Saturday.

"The reports of the world-renowned credit rating agencies, including the latest report of Standard and Poor's (S&P), affirmed that Kuwait pursues a prudent and resilient monetary policy," he pointed out. Dr Hashel attributed the stability of the exchange rate to the KD pegging to a basket of currencies and the maintenance of robust reserves of foreign currencies.

Meanwhile, Finance Minister Barrak Al-Sheetan said that Kuwait's financial status is solid, however reforms in the public financial sector must be pursued to ensure "longevity of institutions and citizens' prosperity." The minister, reacting to the latest statement by the global rating agency Standard & Poor's regarding Kuwait, said fixating Kuwait's sovereign classification at (AA-) is one of the top 27 ratings globally.

The latest grading places Kuwait among states such as Taiwan and Ireland and atop most of the Gulf states, reflecting the state solid credit and financial status, totally backed up by assets' volume of the next generations' fund, he said.

However, the finance minister noted that as a result of liquidity dwindling in the general reserves (the state treasury), the executive and legislative authorities are seeking to find a solution to this challenge and the government is aspiring to cooperate with the legislative authority (parliament) in this respect.

He indicated that the finance ministry presented to the government "available options" for securing sufficient liquidity, noting that the cabinet replied by requesting that such proposed plans be activated. Against this backdrop, an interim financial reform scheme has been worked out and the government has asked the ministry to follow up on its mechanisms. - KUNA