Moroccan and Rwandan Central bank keep rate unchanged in Sept

CASABLACA/KIGALI, Capital Markets in Africa: – Morocco’s central bank kept its benchmark interest rate unchanged at 2.25 percent on Tuesday, saying the inflation forecast was consistent with its price stability objective.

The bank, known as Bank al-Maghrib, said it expected inflation to remain around 1.6 percent in 2016 and fall to 1.2 percent in 2017.

Expecting agricultural output to rebound in 2017 from the worst drought in decades to hit North Africa, the bank said growth would jump to 4 percent next year from an estimated 1.4 percent in 2016. It had previously expected the economy to grow by 1.2 percent in 2016.

Also, Rwanda’s central bank on Tuesday maintained its key repo rate at 6.5 percent, the central bank governor said.

Governor John Rwangombwa said average inflation this year was expected to be between 5.7 and 6 percent, while growth was still on track to hit the target of 6 percent.