Snapshot on the African Economy as @ 070122

East Africa

Kenya

• Pressure on consumer prices in Kenya eased slightly in Dec-2021, with the annual headline rate printing at 5.7%, from 5.8% in Nov-2021. 
• According to the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK), internet mobile banking application usage increased from 25.3% in 2019 to 34.4% in 2021, supported by pandemic realities.  
• Further, according to the CBK, usage of brick-and-mortar bank accounts declined from 29.6% to 23.8% during the period. 
• According to Kenya Pipeline Company (KPC), oil marketers in Kenya are preparing for a potential stock-out of super petrol in Nairobi and the Western region, attributed to unprecedented demand during the holiday period and power supply bottlenecks. 
• The Integrated Payment Services Limited (IPSL), a Kenya Bankers Association’s (KBA) real-time payment services company, recently launched a modernized real-time payment system based on ISO 20022.  
• The Nairobi Securities Exchange (NSE) has issued a notice on the extension of the suspension from trading of the Kenya Airways Plc (KQ) on grounds of uncertainty around the expected government bailout on the airline. 

Rwanda

• According to the National Institute of Statistics Rwanda (NISR) index on industrial production, activity in the sector expanded 17.9% y/y in Nov-2021, driven by the major categories (manufacturing, electricity, water and waste management). 
• National Bank of Rwanda (BNR) data indicated that the current account deficit expanded by 16.5% y/y and 3.1% q/q in Q3-2021 to $336.5m. 

Tanzania

• Real GDP growth in Tanzania accelerated by 5.2% y/y in Q3-2021, faster than the 4.5% y/y expansion recorded in the previous quarter, buoyed by Agriculture and Construction activity. 

• Tanzania's current account deficit widened to $346.2m in Nov-2021, from $166.1m in Oct-2021. 

• Tanzania's M3 money supply rose 14.9% y/y in Nov-2021, according to the Bank of Tanzania (BoT). 

• Airtel Africa (dual-listed in Nigeria and the United Kingdom) has closed the transaction to sell its telecommunications tower assets in Tanzania to a joint venture company owned by a wholly-owned subsidiary of SBA Communications Corporation and UK-based Paradigm Infrastructure Limited for a gross consideration of $176.1m. 

Uganda

• According to national accounts, Uganda's real GDP expanded 3.8% y/y in Q3-2021, slower than 12.9% y/y in Q2-2021 due to economic restrictions and security challenges during the period. 

• The Industrial sector, in particular, suffered from restrictions on economic activity, as it recorded a slight 0.3% y/y expansion. 

• Headline inflation in Uganda increased to 2.9% y/y in Dec-2021 owing to pressures on core inflation and energy price increases. 

• The IHS Markit/Stanbic Bank PMI for Uganda in Dec-2021 declined to 51.5 points from 54.1 in Nov-2021, showing a slowdown in manufacturing activity. Notably, the data indicates that the country is still in expansionary territory, despite the decline. 

• The Bank of Uganda (BoU) monthly composite index of economic activity (CIEA) averaged 148.1 points between Oct-2021 and Nov-2021, higher than 145.6 points between Jul-2021 and Sep-2021. This implies faster economic activity in Q4-2021 

 Southern Africa

 South Africa

• According to IHS Markit Economics, South Africa's Purchasing Managers Index (PMI) fell to a five-month low at 48.4 pts in Dec-21 from 51.7 pts in Nov-2021. This implies renewed contractions in the private sector amid a spike in Covid-19 cases. 
• France has eased its travel restrictions on South Africa as ongoing concerns around the Omicron Covid-19 variant subsidies.

Angola  

• The Angolan government, through the Integrated and Economic Development Office of Lunda Sul, received a total of Kz14.3m in 2021 for the Single Treasury Account, compared to Kz6.9m received in 2020. 

 

• The Support to Production, Export Diversification, and Import Substitution Program (PRODESI) has announced its plans to start the disbursement of Kz732.3bn to finance at least 500 projects of the 1,022 approved in 2021. 

 

 

Namibia

• The Namibian government has assured that the nation has a low chance of defaulting on the N$3.9bn budget deficit loan from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in 2021. 

• The World Food Programme (WFP) and the Environmental Investment Fund (EIF) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to collaborate with the government in its effort to drive Namibia to zero hunger in 2030 and resolve food & nutrition security.

 

Zambia

• According to IHS Markit Economics, the Purchasing Mangers' Index (PMI) for Zambia's private sector fell to 51.5pts in Dec-21 from 51.8pts in Nov-2021.

• The Central Bank of Zambia plans to bump up the size of its domestic bond auctions by 73.0% to ZK2.6bn in Jan-22 from ZK1.5bn, as it seeks to take advantage of improved investors sentiment. This comes after the government moves closer to concluding its bail-out deal with the IMF. 

 

Zimbabwe

• The Zimbabwe Energy Regulatory Authority (ZERA) has announced the delay in the review of fuel prices for Jan-22 as consultations and review of developments in the international oil market are still ongoing. 

• According to Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ), reserve money fell by $126.9m to print at $28.3bn from $28.4bn in the previous week. 

 

Central Africa

DR Congo 

• The World Health Organisation (WHO) has started the vaccination of the targeted 2.0m persons in Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) against cholera.
• The Chief Executive Officer of the East African Business Council (EABC) has welcomed the move to admit DRC into the East African community body.

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