usd202 million were registered. in order to cater to the fx requirements of importers building their stocks ahead of the end - of - year period, the bank intervened on a regular basis since 08 july 2024. a total amount of usd270 million was sold to banks between july and 18 september 2024. the rupee continues to reflect key economic fundamentals of demand and supply, as well as international currency movements. between 11 july and 18 september 2024, the rupee has appreciated by 2. 2 per cent against the us dollar. financial stability i will now share with you key developments on the soundness of the banking and financial system. risks to financial stability have continued to subside, driven mainly by improving macrofinancial conditions. debt sustainability and serviceability metrics have stabilised as household income and corporate earnings grew steadily. the asset quality of banks stayed sound with no signs of debt servicing distress. credit flow by the banking sector to the economy has remained on a steady upward trend since the beginning of the year. bank credit to the private sector grew annually by 7. 6 per cent in july 2024. household credit – a major contributor to the demand for bank credit – expanded at an annual rate of 11. 0 per cent in july 2024. similarly, bank credit to non - financial corporations in mauritius registered a yearly growth of 5. 1 per cent in july 2024. the banking sector maintained its resilience, supported by robust capital and liquidity buffers. the capital adequacy ratio was 20. 9 per cent as at end - june 2024 and the liquidity coverage ratio ( lcr ) improved to 328. 5 per cent in july 2024. the stress test results, based on june 2024 data, showed improved resilience of the banking sector as the number of banks showing vulnerabilities has been declining. the 3 / 4 bis - central bankers'speeches banking sector held robust solvency and liquidity buffers to withstand the series of shocks applied under the various scenarios, including in the forward - looking scenarios. the bank continues to monitor risks to the stability of the financial system while ensuring price stability. mpc decision i now come to the decision of the mpc. recent price dynamics confirm that the mauritian economy is firmly engaged on a disinflationary path – helped by some favourable driving forces, notably limited pressures on international commodity prices, normalisation of freight costs and weakerthan - expected pass

market expects two further policy rate declines of 25 basis points each. the tendency globally has been to move towards a policy rate decline, as evidenced by around 120 decisions from central banks around the world to lower their respective policy rate since the start of 2024. domestic economic developments on the domestic front, first - quarter gdp growth stood at 6. 4 per cent, led by robust performances of main economic sectors, including'accommodation and food service activities ','construction ','financial and insurance activities ','transportation'and'wholesale and retail trade '. domestic consumption and investment continued to rise at 1 / 4 bis - central bankers'speeches a solid pace, supported to a large extent by ongoing capital projects and buoyant household spending. the tourism sector continues to be a key engine of growth, largely reflecting upbeat demand for travel and tourism and effective promotional campaigns. tourist arrivals aggregated 865, 523 for the period january to august 2024, constituting a recovery rate of 99. 2 per cent relative to the 2019 level. arrivals were up by 7. 7 per cent compared to january - august 2023. tourism earnings were also buoyant, totalling rs51. 3 billion over the period january to july 2024, higher by 42. 5 per cent and 6. 6 per cent compared to the corresponding periods of 2019 and 2023, respectively. the current account deficit is projected to improve from 4. 5 per cent of gdp in 2023 to 4. 3 per cent of gdp in 2024, on account of healthy tourism earnings and higher interest income. gross official international reserves of the country remained comfortable at usd7. 9 billion as at 17 september 2024, representing around 12 months of import cover, thus providing adequate buffers against potential external shocks. the banking sector remains resilient with strong capital and liquidity buffers. inflation inflation in mauritius has continued to decline, mostly reflecting the benign global food and energy price environment, lower shipping costs as well as the fading out of domestic shocks. headline inflation fell from a peak of 11. 3 per cent in february 2023 to 4. 0 per cent in august 2024, marking 18 months of successive decline and stayed within the inflation target range of 2 to 5 per cent since the last four months. core measures of inflation also remained engaged on a firm downward trend, standing at 2. 3 per cent in august. a more granular analysis reveals that the proportion of pro - inflation items in the cpi basket