Since the beginning of September, the national currency has lost 1.2 percent against the dollar and, since the beginning of January, it has recorded an accumulated drop of 11 percent, in a context in which debt payments in foreign currency and lower oil prices make it difficult for the government to intervene to 'hold' the kwanza.
"The recent pressures on oil prices are not favourable to the currencies of countries that produce this raw material, such as Angola", commented Eaglestone's chief economist, Tiago Dionísio, for whom a strong dollar will "continue to put pressure" on the external debt of African countries.
Angola depends on oil revenues to obtain most of its foreign currency and spends a large part of this revenue on debt repayments, which increased significantly after the moratorium on Chinese debt ended last year.
Angola, sub-Saharan Africa’s second-largest producer, owes Chinese creditors about 17 billion dollars and will pay 1.1 billion dollars each month until December to service its domestic and foreign debt, Bloomberg reports, citing the newspaper Expansão.
Last month, the Finance Ministry said it would pay local suppliers in treasury bonds because it lacked sufficient funds, and has also delayed payments to civil servants due to these liquidity problems.
