BANJUL, Dec. 29 (Xinhua) -- The Gambian President Adama Barrow on Friday said in his New Year's statement that the country's worrying currency inflation has declined almost one year since he took over the leadership.
"Inflation has reversed its rising trend declining from 8.8 percent in January to 7.4 percent in October 2017, reflecting the gradual decline in food prices and stabilization of the Dalasi," it stated.
He said the Treasury bill rates have declined between September 2016 and September 2017.
"This has reduced the cost of Government's borrowing by close to 50 percent and this trend is set to continue in the coming year," he assured in the statement.
He said the Dalasi currency has remained stable since April 2017; with gross international reserves increasing from less than one month of import cover at end-2016 to well over 4 months by the end of year under review.
The Dalasi has been consistently losing its value in recent years against hard currencies such as the U.S. dollars, British Pound and the Euro, causing inflation.
