The difference between the official market exchange rate and the one prevailing on the informal foreign exchange market has significantly reduced by 10 percent in 2022, the deputy governor of the National Reserve Bank of Angola (BNA), Manuel Dias said last week.
Speaking on the sidelines of a business meeting with Angolan businesspeople, the BNA official said the appreciation of the local currency (Kwanza) was preponderant for the improvement of the business environment in the country, particularly for foreign investors that plan to expatriate their dividends in a timely and secured manner.
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Dias pointed out that one of the causes for the appreciation of the Kwanza was the introduction of a flexible exchange rate system on the foreign exchange market, which made it possible to adjust the value of the national currency to market conditions, now operating normally, without any administrative restrictions.
“Overall, during the period in question, the country experienced an appreciation of the exchange rate, due to a reduction in supply, and there was an appreciation of the national currency of around 10 percent”, he clarified.
In terms of Angola’s current account, which was in deficit from 2014 to 2017, the BNA official said the current account has become positive since 2018 (including 2020, which was heavily affected by the impact of Covid-19) at 18 percent, compared to 12 percent in 2021.
The BNA official added that 2023 is expected to end with a positive Current Account balance of around 3.2 percent of the Gross Domestic Product, underlining that the country’s Net International Reserve (NIR) in 2022 was around 14.5 billion US dollars, slightly higher than in 2021.
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The stability recorded, in terms of net international reserve, brought about a 6 per cent increase, representing slightly around six months coverage of imports of goods and services.
Dias justified that the reserves “have remained very stable”, and that the basis of this balance is the change in the method of verification of the reserves, which at present eliminates all liabilities.
