Inflation targeting will remain policy in South Africa but the government is prepared to discuss it, Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan told the Financial Times.
”Inflation targeting is part of our policy at the moment. And it will remain policy,” he said in the interview published on Thursday.
But he added: ”There are diverse forces or voices in South Africa and rather than shun them, one needs to engage with them and show — or give an ear if you like — to have that as part of the democratic engagement within South Africa.”
Trade union and communist allies of the ruling African National Congress have pushed for a relaxation or abandonment of inflation targeting, which they blame for fairly tight monetary policy and they said it has hurt the poor. — Reuters