1. On the 30th May 2017, the Central Bank of Lesotho's Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) held its 65th meeting. The Committee considered international, regional and domestic economic and financial markets conditions, as well as the Net International Reserves (NIR) developments and outlook.
2. Global economic activity recovered moderately in the first quarter of 2017. The positive performance in advanced economies came mainly from Japan and United Kingdom, while the economic activity from the Euro Area and the United States (US) remained subdued. Growth from the Emerging Market Economies (EMEs) was spurred by positive economic developments in China. South Africa’s economic performance is estimated to have deteriorated during the first quarter due to amongst others, the anticipated impact of the sovereign credit ratings downgrade that is expected to negatively weigh on investment, consumer and business sentiments. As a result, monetary policy stance in advanced and emerging market economies remained generally accommodative.
