The South African Reserve Bank has decided to keep the repo rate unchanged at 6.75%. Reserve Bank Governor Lesetja Kganyago announced the benchmark rate at a media briefing in Pretoria a short while ago.
The bank last hiked the rate in November last year, when the Monetary Policy Committee introduced a 25-basis point increase.
Kganyago says more structural reforms are necessary to deal with the current economic challenges.
“ The committee remains of the view that current challenges facing the economy are primarily structural in nature and cannot be resolved by Monetary Policy alone. It is now even more urgent to have a combination of prudent macro-economic policies and structural reforms that raise potential growth and lower the cost structure. The MPC decided to keep the repurchase rate unchanged at 6.75% per year. Three members preferred to keep rates on hold and two members preferred a cut of 25 basis points.”
The MPC decided to keep the repurchase rate unchanged at 6.75% per year. pic.twitter.com/uhaswCa1it
— SA Reserve Bank (@SAReserveBank) May 23, 2019
The MPC assesses the risks to the growth forecast to be on the downside – @KganyagoLesetja pic.twitter.com/tGnbOsDmU6
— SA Reserve Bank (@SAReserveBank) May 23, 2019