Interest rate |

Ghana central bank reduces policy rate by 50 bps to 25.5 pct

ACCRA (Capital Markets in Africa) – Ghana’s central bank reduced its main policy rate by 50 basis points on Monday to 25.5 percent, which Governor Abdul-Nashiru Issahaku said reflected a better outlook for inflation and the need to boost growth. The first interest rate cut since July 2011 could herald further reductions next year as inflation, which for years has stood above government targets, begins to fall at a faster pace, according to economists. It is…

Pre-MPC Note: Blunted Policy Tools Call for Rollback of Administrative Measures

Posted on by The Editorial Team

LAGOS (Capital Markets in Africa) – Next week Monday and Tuesday (21st and 22nd November), the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) of the CBN will be holding its 6th and last meeting in 2017 to review major developments in the global and domestic space in order to make vital policy decisions. Since the last MPC meeting held in September, the global risk landscape and policy outlook have changed dramatically, underlined by the emergence of Donald Trump…

Uganda central bank cuts main rate to 13 pct, more easing seen

Posted on by The Editorial Team

KAMPALA (Capital Markets in Africa) – Uganda’s central bank cut its main interest rate on Tuesday to 13 percent from 14 percent to boost growth, and analysts said there was room for another reduction this year. Policymakers in the East African nation began cutting the benchmark rate in April, bringing it back down from the peak of 17 percent reached as the bank battled a surge in prices. Core inflation dipped to 4.8 percent last month…

Congo Raises Key Rate to 7% to Check Inflation, Defend Franc

Posted on by The Editorial Team

KINSHASA (Capital Markets in Africa) – The Democratic Republic of Congo raised its key interest rate by 5 percentage points to 7 percent because of accelerating inflation and “tensions” in the foreign-exchange market. The increase marks the first change in the base rate in almost three years and comes after the government’s foreign-exchange reserves dropped below $1 billion for the first time since 2008. Reserves have fallen by a third since the start of the year as a sustained…

‘Super Rate Hike’ Still Seen in Egypt as Devaluation Looms

Posted on by The Editorial Team

CAIRO, Capital Markets in Africa: Egypt’s central bank, which unexpectedly left borrowing costs unchanged last week, is keeping its powder dry for what one economist called a “super” rate increase. Five out of 8 economists in a Bloomberg survey had expected the Monetary Policy Committee to raise its key rate on Thursday to curb accelerating inflation and lay the ground for a widely anticipated devaluation. The meeting was likely the last before Egypt secures a…

Kenyan Lender CBA to Take Mobile-Bank Service Deeper Into Africa

Posted on by The Editorial Team

NAIROBI, Capital Markets in Africa: A Kenyan lender that transformed from an also-ran into the country’s biggest deposit-taker, mainly through a mobile-phone banking service started four years ago, plans to use the product as a beachhead to expand outside its East African home base. Commercial Bank of Africa Ltd., which also has units in Tanzania and Uganda, is seeking to export its M-Shwari mobile-phone service as part of a strategy to eventually have operations in 16 African…

South Africa’s Central Bank Signals Possible End to Hiking Cycle

Posted on by The Editorial Team

JOHANNESBURG, Capital Markets in Africa: South Africa’s Reserve Bank left interest rates unchanged for a third straight meeting as it signaled it may be close to the end of its policy-tightening cycle. The central bank kept the benchmark repurchase rate at 7 percent, Governor Lesetja Kganyago told reporters Thursday in the capital, Pretoria. This was in line with the forecasts of all 27 economists in a Bloomberg survey. “The MPC is of the view that should current forecasts transpire,…

« 1 2 3 4 5 6 … 8 »