Malawi’s foreign exchange reserves up to 2.5 months
Records from the Reserve Bank of Malawi indicate that the country’s import cover has this week increased from 65 days to 72 days.
This comes barely days after tobacco registered total earnings of $233.8 million from 113 million kgs sold so far.
Malawi needs a monthly import cover of $188.1 million and the central bank says gross official reserves increased to $452 million from $404 million.
“The country’s foreign exchange reserve requirement is pegged at $564.3 million covering 3 months. The above mentioned improvement can be attributed to tobacco sales which are at peak. The private sector reserves closed marginally high from $278 million to $281 million,” RBM said.
Commenting on the same, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) Head of Mission to Malawi Tsidi Tsikata commended government for its financial prudence exercised in the past 12 months which has seen clearance of all forex arrears the country had due.
The local currency closed the week with a slight loss of grip against the US dollar as commercial banks and foreign exchange bureaus were buying it at K323 and selling it at around K330.
Tobacco is currently attracting an average price of $2.05 per kg down from last year’s $2.16 per kg as authorities still hunt for medium to long term economic hubs that will assure the Malawi’s fragile economy of stable exports and foreign exchange earnings.
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