Repo rate remains unchanged

The Monetary Policy Committee of the Bank of Namibia (BoN) this week opted to leave the repo rate unchanged at 6%, the rationale behind the move was an attempt by the central bank to support domestic economic activities. The Bank of Namibia further anticipated annual inflation to average 5.5% for 2014.
“The domestic economy is expected to improve during 2014, compared to 2013, supported by construction activities and strong domestic demand. The risk to growth remains low international commodity prices, due to depressed, which could impact negatively on export earnings, mining profits and employment,” BoN said.
Annual inflation slowed in recent months. The slowdown since July 2014 according to the Bank of Namibia, was reflected mainly in food, transport, and housing categories.
Credit to the private sector continued to grow strongly during the first eight months of 2014, growing at an average rate of 15.5% as compared to 14.2% for the first eight months of 2013 the central bank said.
“Growth in private sector growth was driven by both credit to the business sector and individuals. Strong growth in credit to individuals was particularly observed in the categories overdraft, other loans and advances and instalment credit,” the Bank of Namibia said.