Agriculture, trade and tourism rebound to stimulate growth – CBK

Kenya's central bank sees the country's economy growing at 6.2 percent this year, slightly above the Treasury's estimate of 5.8 percent on the back of the stronger agricultural sector. CBK Governor Patrick Njoroge said yesterday that positive forecasts were based on the economy's performance in the first quarter, which rose nearly 100 basis points to 5.7% in the first quarter, compared with 4 , 8% for the same period last year.

in agricultural activities due to improved weather conditions, the recovery in the manufacturing sector and the resilience of trade, real estate and tourism.

& # 39; & # 39; Growth is expected to be strong in 2018, supported by continued recovery in agriculture, a resilient service sector, spending on Big Four and a stable microeconomic environment, "said Njoroge.

CBK also expects credit to the private sector to increase as the economy continues to recover. Loans to the sector increased 4.3% in the 12 months to June, compared to 2.4% in the same period last year. However, many may not feel the impact of economic growth, although inflation remains within 7.5% of the CBK, it is expected to increase slightly due to the high prices of the economy. Energy and the impact of recent tax measures.

Monthly inflation rose from 4% in May to 4.3% in June. This figure is, however, much lower than in the same period last year, when it reached 11.7%, the 27th largest in the world.

"High prices for domestic fuel due to the increase in the international market, the impact of the excise tax on the consumer price index Borrowers should, however, have access to credit at home. a lower interest rate of 13 percent, after the Monetary Policy Committee lowered the central bank rate to nine. The governor said the country has enough foreign exchange reserves equivalent to 5.9 months of import cover to provide sufficient protection against short-term shocks in the foreign exchange market.

owns 8.83 billion dollars (883 billion shillings) in its reserves. Precautionary arrangements with the International Monetary Fund's equivalent of 987.7 million dollars (98.7 billion shillings) provide an additional buffer against exogenous shocks, "Njoroge said.

The IMF Mechanism Expires in September and representatives of lenders are already in the country to extend or not.