The Stears Weekly Macroeconomic Report highlights the macroeconomic trends and policy shifts shaping the African investment landscape, helping you make informed decisions in dynamic markets.
Country updates
Central Africa
Foreign exchange
Last week, Central African currencies demonstrated notable resilience, underpinned by improved external liquidity and growing reserve buffers. The Angolan kwanza held firm at AOA912/$, sustained by robust foreign exchange inflows, primarily from oil exports, and a tight monetary policy stance. The forex market remained well-supplied, with $5.55 billion traded in H1 2025, up from $5.08 billion in 2024, helping alleviate demand pressure and stabilise the currency. International reserves rose modestly from $15.5 billion in Q1 2025 to $15.7 billion in Q2 2025, reinforcing external liquidity. While near-term stability is likely to be maintained, the kwanza remains sensitive to oil price volatility. Stears projects a slight depreciation to AOA912.8/$ by the end of Q3 2025.
The Central African CFA franc (XAF), the common currency of six
