By Sfundo Parakozov, Kopano Gumbi and Alexander Winning
South Africa’s central bank paused its rate-cutting cycle on Thursday as risks stemming from U.S. President Donald Trump’s global trade war and the country’s deadlocked national budget overshadow its success keeping inflation low.
The South African Reserve Bank’s split decision to keep the repo rate at 7.50% was in line with the median forecast of economists polled by Reuters and follows rate cuts at the previous three monetary policy meetings.
Four Monetary Policy Committee members supported an unchanged stance and two preferred a 25 basis point cut.
“The global economy is not on a stable footing and there are also domestic uncertainties, … this calls for a cautious policy approach,” Governor Lesetja Kganyago told a press conference.
Annual inflation was unchanged at 3.2% in February, staying near the bottom of the central bank’s target range of 3% to 6%.
The rand has proved resilient so far this year, gaining more than 3%
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