China’s data for the first two months of the year were fairly dismal. Most activity indicators suggest that there are large downward pressures on the economy, which means that the government will need to ease measures if it is to keep the economy growing close to its target. Industrial production grew just 6.8% y/y in the first two months of the year, down from a 7.9% increase in December. This was due to further weakness…
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CAIRO (Reuters) – Egypt’s current account deficit widened to $2.9 billion in the three months to December from $1.4 billion in the same period the previous year, according to Reuters calculations. The deficit stood at $4.3 billion in the first half of the fiscal year which began on July 1, compared with a deficit of $866 million in the same period a year before, the central bank said on Thursday. The deficit was driven by…
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TUNIS (Reuters) – Tunisia’s new government will launch an emergency economic plan that includes reforms in subsidies and social funds to revive growth to a projected 7 per cent in five years, Tunisian Prime Minister Habib Essid said.Tunisia has been praised as an example of compromise politics and democratic transition since overthrowing autocrat Zine El-Abidine Ben Ali in a 2011 uprising, holding free elections and drafting a new constitution.But the North African country faces pressure from…
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Overview • Risks to Rwanda’s external financing are reducing owing to stable donor flows and the government’s ability to access the capital markets. • Real GDP growth rates have rebounded to more than 6.0% in 2014 from the 2013 low of 4.6%, and we project 7% GDP growth for Rwanda in 2015-2018. Fiscal consolidation is on track, and deficits are narrowing. • We are raising our long-term ratings on Rwanda to ‘B+’ from ‘B’ and…
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Interest rates are expected to remain favourable as inflation outlook remains positive and economists are predicting an accommodative monetary policy. Bank of Botswana states in the Monetary Policy statement released on Tuesday March 3 that given the global and domestic economic outlook and inflationary trends, inflation is expected to remain within the 3 – 6 per cent objective range in the short to medium term. Global outlook forecast for this year is forecast at 3.5…
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NAIROBI (Reuters) – Kenya is due to become one of the fastest-growing economies in east Africa, with a growth forecast of 6.0 percent in 2015 and 6.6 percent in 2016, the World Bank said on Thursday, citing falling oil prices and bigger infrastructure investments. Kenya’s economy grew by an estimated 5.4 percent in 2014, the bank said in its latest economic update, while growth could accelerate to 7.0 percent in 2017. “After growing an estimated…
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The International Monetary Fund projected Morocco’s real GDP growth to rebound to 4.4% in 2015 from 2.9% in 2014, supported by improved external demand, strengthened domestic confidence and normalized agricultural output. It expected real GDP growth to average more than 5% annually over the medium term, reflecting the ongoing modernization of the agriculture sector, the continued expansion of Moroccan firms in new markets, the growing importance of newly developed sectors, as well as higher investment…
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