IMF increasing funding limits, SA’s economic recovery

The IMF’s decision to expand access limits could open the way for African economies to receive more multilateral support, but the Fund clearly wants countries to move to programmes with conditionality – something that policymakers in Nigeria and South Africa (and possibly others) are unlikely to accept. Meanwhile, recent developments reinforce our view that South Africa will suffer a slow and bumpy recovery. Despite its cautious tone this week, the Reserve Bank is likely to cut interest rates further.