Namibia's trade deficit rises by 17 percent

Martin Endjala Namibia’s trade deficit swelled by 17 percent, marking its most significant gap since May 2022. While exports fell by 5.8 percent, imports rose by 2.2 percent in August 2023. The export bill stood at N$7.4 billion, with imports amounting to N$12.3 billion. This resulted in a trade deficit of N$4.9 billion, up from N$3.7 billion in July 2022. Angelique Bock, an economist at Simonis Storm Securities, pinpointed the 2023 depreciation of the rand as a significant factor impacting Namibia, especially in terms of imports and inflation dynamics. She said that the rand devalued by 5.8 percent against the…