Angola maintains rate as inflation continues to decelerate

     Angola's central bank kept its benchmark BNA rate at 16.0 percent, once again saying its monetary policy committee (CPM) had taken note for the downward trajectory in inflation that began in January this year.
      The National Bank of Angola (BNA) has maintained its rate since June 2016 and in August the national headline inflation rate fell for the eight consecutive month to 25.18 percent from 41.12 percent in December 2016.
      Inflation as measured in the province of Luanda eased to 26.95 percent in August from 29.01 percent in July and 38.18 percent in August last year, the BNA said.
       Angola's inflation rate began accelerating in early 2015 as the fall in crude oil prices dented government revenue and foreign exchange earnings, weakening the kwanza's exchange rate and pushing up import prices and inflation.
      The BNA added the LUIBOR overnight rate was 22.23 percent while 3 month and 12 month rates were at 19.62 percent and 23.27 percent, respectively.
       Preliminary data for August also show that credit to the economy had fallen by 0.29 percent while gross credit to the central government had risen 2.36 percent and government deposits in the banking system had decreased 12.74 percent.
      The exchange rate of Angola's kwanza against the U.S. dollar was unchanged at 165.92.
      The BNA has devalued the kwanza several times in recent years and has been quoting the kwanza around 165 per U.S. dollar since mid-April 2016. In January last year the central bank let the kwanza ease to around 155 from around 135, the rate it had targeted since September 2015.
      The latest data for Angola's Gross Domestic Product show the economy contracted by an annual 4.3 percent in the third quarter of 2016 as the economy remains in recession that began in the second quarter of 2015.

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