A technical team from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) headed by Norbert Toé visited Kinshasa during December 3–10, 2014. The team reviewed recent economic developments and short-term prospects, updated the macroeconomic framework, and discussed possible themes for the 2015 Article IV Consultation with the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). At the end of the mission, Mr. Toé issued the following statement: “Despite a challenging external and domestic environment, the DRC’s economy continues to show resilience with positive trends in key macroeconomic indicators. However, it remains highly dependent on the mining sector, which makes it vulnerable to volatile commodity prices. “Macroeconomic performance remains strong with growth in GDP expected to reach 9 percent in real terms in 2014 and inflation to be below 2 percent. Growth continues to be driven essentially by increases in mining output and, to some extent, higher production in the agricultural sector. The current account position improved marginally with the deficit declining from 11 to 8.9 percent of GDP. Nevertheless, international reserves will be stagnant at their relatively low level. In 2015, growth is expected to continue, supported by the buoyancy of the mining sector and the expansion of agriculture. The main risk to the economic outlook arises from a decline in copper and cobalt prices, which account for about 98 percent of exports of goods and 44 percent of nominal GDP
Posted on: Fri, 12 Dec 2014 09:51:19 +0000