Repo rate remains unchanged

Bank of Namibia (BoN) Governor, Johannes !Gawaxab on Wednesday announced that the repo rate remains unchanged at 7,75 per cent.

!Gawaxab, who made the announcement at the BoN Oshakati branch in the Oshana Region, said this follows after the Bank of Namibia’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) decided to maintain the repo rate at 7,75 per cent.

“The decision was taken following a comprehensive review of global, regional and domestic economic developments,” he said.

The BoN Governor stated that they want to continue safeguarding the peg between the Namibian Dollar and the South African Rand and support the domestic economy.

Further, !Gawaxab said domestic activity is projected to slow down to about 3,3 per cent for 2023 as a whole, compared to 4,6 per cent registered in 2022.

Meanwhile, on a monthly basis, annual inflation declined to 4,5 per cent in July 2023 from 5,3 per cent in June 2023.

!Gawaxab indicated that the annual growth in Private Sector Credit Extension (PSCE) improved to 3,0 per cent in June 2023 from 2,6 per cent in April 2023, albeit renaming lower by historical standards.

He stated that the rise in PCSE growth was attributed to an increase in the demand for credit by the household sector.

The unchanged repo rate will remain in place until the next meeting of the MPC on 23 and 24 October 2023.

Source: The Namibia Press Agency