Namibia - Riba

The Bank of Namibia left its benchmark repo rate steady at 6.75 percent on October 23rd 2019, following a 25 bps cut in the previous meeting, to support the economic recovery and maintain the one-to-one link between the Namibian dollar and the South African rand. Policymakers noted that economic activity remained subdued in the first eight months of the year, as reflected in mining, construction, wholesale & retail trade and agriculture. In contrast, the manufacturing sector improved, but the economy is projected to remain weak in 2019. Meantime, headline inflation fell to a near four-year low of 3.3 percent in September, and it is expected to average 3.9 percent in 2019.

The Bank of Namibia slashed its benchmark repo rate by 25 bps to 6.50 percent on August 14th 2019, to support the domestic economy and maintain the one-to-one link between the Namibian dollar and the South African rand. This is the first cut since August 2017 and comes after the South African Reserve Bank's decision to cut its own interest rate by 25 basis points to 6.50% in July. Policymakers noted that economic activity remained subdued in the first six months of the year, as reflected in mining, construction, electricity, and wholesale & retail trade. Other sectors such as manufacturing, transport and communication improved, but the economy is projected to remain weak in 2019. Meantime, headline inflation continued its downward trajectory in June when it reached an over 1-year low of 3.9 percent from 4.1 percent in the prior month.

The Bank of Namibia left its benchmark repo rate steady at 6.75 percent on June 12th 2019, to support economic recovery. Policymakers noted that domestic activity slowed during the first four months of 2019, mainly reflected in sectors such as mining, agriculture, construction, and wholesale and retail trade; and the economy is projected to remain weak in 2019. The Namibian economy contracted by 0.1 percent in 2018 and by 0.9 percent in 2017, on lower agricultural output. Headline inflation stood at 4.5 percent in April 2019, unchanged from the previous month and it is expected to average 4.5 percent in 2019.

The Bank of Namibia held its benchmark repo rate steady at 6.75 percent at its April 10th 2019 meeting, to help spur growth. The Namibian GDP contracted 0.1 percent in 2018 and 0.9 percent in 2017 mainly due to lower agricultural output. Policymakers noted that activity remained subdued in the first two months of 2019, reflected in sectors such as mining, agriculture and construction. And as other sectors, including transport and communication, wholesale and retail trade and manufacturing improved during the same period, the economy is projected to grow marginally in 2019. The annual inflation slowed to a six-month low of 4.4 percent in February 2019 from 4.7 percent in the previous month.

The Bank of Namibia held its benchmark repo rate steady at 6.75 percent at its February 13th 2019 meeting, in order to support domestic economic growth. The domestic economy remained weak in 2018 and is estimated to contract slightly, following negative growth of 0.9 percent recorded in 2017, mainly due to declining activity in agriculture and wholesale and retail trade. And as other sectors, including mining, transport and communication and manufacturing improved during the same period, domestic economy is projected grow in 2019. The annual average inflation for 2018 was lower at 4.3 percent compared to 6.2 percent in 2017, mainly due to lower pressure from housing and food prices. Still, in recent months inflation picked up, reaching 5.1 percent in December. In 2019, the annual inflation rate is projected to average around 5.6 percent.