Daily Times

Central banks in Frontier Markets (FMs) have stepped up their efforts to contain rising inflation caused by ongoing supply-chain disruptions, logistical issues and soaring commodity prices, said Fitch Ratings in its latest ‘Frontier Vision’ report. According to the report, while a number of central bankers continue to view the pick-up in inflation as short lived, many are tightening monetary policy to reduce the risk of transitory increases becoming more permanent. Interest rates have already risen in Pakistan, Angola, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Paraguay, Sri Lanka and Tajikistan, among others. Domestic economic activity has also recovered strongly in many frontier markets, including Georgia, Costa Rica and Belize, although this trend has not been uniform across all FMs. At the same time, labour markets have had rapid annual employment growth increases in 2Q21 in many FMs, such as in Azerbaijan, Belize, Costa Rica, Georgia and Senegal, said Fitch.