Kganyago paints bleak economic picture, warns of new domestic & global challenges
Despite some improvements, South African Reserve Bank Governor Lesetja Kganyago said that risks and vulnerabilities that built up during the COVID pandemic were yet to fully subside.
South African Reserve Bank Governor Lesetja Kganyago. Picture: @SAReserveBank/X
JOHANNESBURG - South African Reserve Bank Governor Lesetja Kganyago has painted a bleak economic picture as new domestic and global challenges emerge.
Despite some improvements, Kganyago said that risks and vulnerabilities that built up during the COVID pandemic were yet to fully subside.
The governor made the comments during the central bank’s annual ordinary general meeting of shareholders in Pretoria on Tuesday.
Inflation remains stubbornly high and public debt levels globally are also at record levels.
Kganyago said that while the current global challenges were yet to be fully overcome, more risks continued to emerge.
He warned that there was little monetary or fiscal policy space available to deal with these risks to financial stability, renewed inflation pressures or even the growing challenge of climate change.
"Inflation remains a major policy concern for central banks globally."
Despite the concerns, Kganyago said that restrictive monetary policy, recovery in supply chains and other pandemic-related bottlenecks had helped inflation to recede from its 2022 highs.