After spending the past two years trying to get inflation under control by raising interest rates, the Fed is inching toward cutting rates soon. This policy shift has ignited claims that the Fed is “being political” because in standard economic theory, cutting interest rates would stimulate the economy, making it easier for businesses to get […]
Qatar may record budget surplus in the current financial year, Emirates NBD said and noted GCC governments will need to rein in spending growth to prevent budget balances shrinking further as little rebound in oil revenues is expected in 2024. Qatar’s general budget for 2024 approved last month expects revenue of QR202bn and expenditure of […]
The UAE’s real gross domestic product (GDP) is expected to grow by 3.7% in 2024, up from from 3.4% last year, according to the World Bank’s Global Economic Prospects report. The GDP is forecast to rise to 3.8% in 2025, it added. Meanwhile, the growth in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries will rise to […]
Ghana’s official creditors are scheduled to meet on Monday to discuss restructuring some $5.4 billion in loans to the country, three sources told Reuters, a key step needed to secure its next tranche of funding from the International Monetary Fund. The bilateral lenders, including the governments of China and France who co-chair the Official Creditor […]
Ghana is expecting to secure a $1.15 billion funding from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank by the end of February as bilateral creditors near agreement on the terms of a debt restructuring. The finance minister, Ken Ofori-Atta, expresses confidence in reaching an agreement with official creditors on the terms of a […]
The International Monetary Fund recently released a report listing the member countries that have been delayed in the completion of their Article IV consultations. Out of the 12 nations included in the IMF’s report, 4 were African. As of December 2023, the aforementioned delay has lasted a minimum of eighteen months. The main objectives of […]
The World Economic Forum, with support from the Government of the United Arab Emirates, along with more than 20 corporate and research partners in the food sector, launched today the First Movers Coalition for Food. The initiative uses the combined procurement power for sustainably produced farming products to speed up the adoption of sustainable farming, […]
Emerging markets are gearing up for their biggest election year in decades, with investors focused on fiscal discipline and populist shifts that could stir markets and blur the outlook for some key economies. Countries home to more than half the world’s population and accounting for more than 60% of global economic output go to the […]
South African private sector activity shrank in December as companies signalled a greater impact on business amid the gridlock problems afflicting the country’s ports, a survey showed on Thursday. The S&P Global South Africa Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) fell to 49.0 in December from 50.0 in November. A reading above 50 indicates growth in activity. […]
The BRICS group will double its membership on January 1, as the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Iran and Ethiopia join the alliance, South Africa’s envoy to the bloc has confirmed, according to a Bloomberg report. The five existing members of the alliance, Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, had invited six new countries to […]