Economy | - Part 83

Continued Weakness in Commodity Markets May Signal Long Term Easing of Prices

Well-supplied markets are continuing to drive down prices of commodities, across the board, says the latest issue of the World Bank’s Commodity Markets Outlook (CMO), released today. Most indices edged further down during the first quarter of 2015, with food down 7.3 percent, crude oil down 13 percent and metals down 9 percent compared to the fourth quarter of 2014. Prices are expected to stay weak for the rest of this year, with only a…

African Inflation Snapshot: March 2015

Posted on by The Editorial Team

Angola’s inflation rises to 7.87 percent: Angola’s consumer inflation edged up to 7.87 percent year-on-year in March from 7.73 percent in February, according to data from the statistics office. On a month-on-month basis, prices rose 0.63 percent after a 0.76 percent increase previously. Botswana’s CPI remains unchanged at 2.8 percent: Botswana’s consumer inflation was steady at 2.8 percent year-on-year in March from the previous month, according to data from the statistics office. Whereas inflation increased…

Despite the End of the Commodity Boom, African Countries Can Sustain Their Growth

Posted on by The Editorial Team

The World Bank Group forecasts that economic growth for African countries will slow in 2015 to 4.0 percent from 4.5 percent in 2014, a downturn which largely reflects the sharp fall in global prices for oil and other key commodities. At a seminar with African finance ministers, central bankers and their delegations during the World Bank Group Spring Meetings, the Bank’s Africa Chief Economist Francisco Ferreira explained that his 2015 forecast was below the 4.4…

East African: Rising inflation takes its toll on region’s economies……

Posted on by The Editorial Team

East African economies are experiencing rising inflation as their currencies continue to weaken against the dollar according to the East African. The Bank of Uganda has raised its benchmark lending rate for the first time since June 2014, in a bid to slow the increase in inflation. BoU Governor Emmanuel Tumusiime-Mutebile said that the depreciation of the shilling and faster real GDP growth will lead to an increase in inflation over the medium term. Uganda…

Nigerian current-account deficit is 0.1% GDP in Q4 2014

Posted on by The Editorial Team

The CBN’s External Sector Development Report for Q4 2014 shows a modest current-account deficit equivalent to 0.1% of GDP. This was to be expected, given that the international oil price fell by about US$25/b over the quarter in question. The report also revised earlier data, notably for Q2 for which a surplus representing 1.1% of GDP was transformed into a 0.4% deficit. The deterioration predates the latest slide in the oil price and can be traced to…

Nigerian Foreign Reserves at Record Low

Posted on by The Editorial Team

According to the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), reported levels of the Nigerian External Reserves (“the Reserves”) as at 15th of April 2015 stands at US$29.3bn – its lowest level since 2010. Worthy of note is the fact that the Reserves have been on a downward trend since the beginning of the year on the back of falling global oil prices and CBN’s resolve to defend the Naira. The Reserves has declined US$5.0bn (16.9%) in…

Global remittances to slow down in 2015 say WorldBank report

Posted on by The Editorial Team

Growth in global remittances, including those to developing countries, will slow sharply in 2015 due to weak economic growth in Europe, deterioration of the Russian economy and the depreciation of the euro and ruble, says the latest issue of the World Bank’s Migration and Development Brief. Officially recorded remittances to the developing world are expected to reach USD 440bn in 2015, an increase of 0.9% over the previous year. Global remittances, including those to high…

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