dollar with the
metical in subsidiary circulation perhaps given the preference of many Mozambicans for the U.S.
A surge in commodity exports and slowdown in imports have led to a significant reduction in the current account deficit net of foreign direct investment, and supported a 30% appreciation of the
metical as of late October relative to the prior year.
Inflation has risen sharply, to 21 per cent on a year-on-year basis in August, fueled by a roughly 40 per cent depreciation of the
metical since the beginning of the year.
S&P said that the freeze, combined with weak commodity prices, led to a significant weakening of the nominal Mozambican
metical (MZN) exchange rate and a sizable decline of foreign exchange (FX) reserves-ultimately leading to forecasts of weak economic growth this year and next.
Appreciation of the
metical against the South African rand over the last 12 months will temper inflationary pressures to some extent given that South Africa is Mozambique's main source of imports.
dollar, South African rand, Botswana pula, Zambian kwacha, and Mozambican
metical all became increasingly popular in Zimbabwe during 2008 (IRINnews 2009).
Paul Fauvet, who worked for AIM (The Mozambique News Agency) in the 1980s with Carlos Cardoso, and Marcello Mosse, who worked with Cardoso on Mediafax and
Metical, two papers of the 1990s distributed by fax machine, paint a detailed portrait of the man and his times.
Cardoso, 48, editor of the daily fax newsletter
Metical, was shot dead by two assassins wielding AK-47 assault rifles as he left his office in the capital, Maputo.
Inflation has risen sharply, reaching 21 percent on a year on year basis in August, fueled by a significant depreciation of the
metical (about 40 percent since the start of the year).
At the same time, the
metical has depreciated by about 28 per cent since the beginning of the year and international reserves have continued to decline," Lazare said.
Our expectations of a further weakening of the
metical in 2016 are likely to push public debt/GDP to over 100% in 2016, the highest figure in 15 years and compared with only 37.8% in 2011.
Standard Bank's chief economist in Mozambique, Fausio Mussa, says: "Continued inflows of foreign investment and increased exports point to the maintenance of a relatively stable exchange rate for the
metical against the US dollar, which will keep inflation in single digits, between 5% and 6%.
