CMR recorded a fall of 3.8% in GDP in 2013

The exacerbation of the current account deficit of Cameroun continued in 2013 with about 3,6% of gross domestic product (GDP) with a fall in the external assets of 43,9 billion FCFA, according to a report from the ministry for Finances.

The balance of payments thus presented a loss in balance of about 43,9 billion FCFA last year, in a reduction of 91,5 billion FCFA compared to the surplus of 47,6 billion FCFA recorded in 2012.

On this basis, the deficit of the current transactions rose to 557,2 billion FCFA representing a fall in about 3.8% of the GDP, generating a fall of 97,5 billion FCFA on the goods, 306,2 billion FCFA on the services and 303,9 billion FCFA on the incomes.

The report also emphasized an overdrawn commercial balance of 1054,4 billion on the customs statistics, because of the fall of the crude oil imports, fuels and lubricants, hydrocarbons, and clinker.

Conversely, exports of the crude oil, wood, raw cotton, rough cocoa and banana will have been registered with an increase. Except oil and petroleum products, indicated the report, where the deficit is higher (1556,3 billion FCFA) with "a strong dependence on the domestic demand to the imported products".

For the studied period, the structural deficit of the balance of the services worsened about 50.7 billion FCFA, resulting from the stations "transport", "voyages", "insurances" and "other services with the companies".

The balance of the banking and nonbanking transfers, which remained dominated by the private sending to the diaspora, was registered with the rise of about 16 billion FCFA but strongly decreases (31,1 billion FCFA) compared to 2012.

The balance of payments records however a surplus of the external financings, in spite of a reduction of 31,1 billion FCFA compared to 2012.

In the plan of the total balances, which translate the capacities of the Cameroonian economy to generate reserves, they will have been overdrawn, by order of importance, with Nigeria, France, the United States and China but surplus with the economic and monetary Community of central Africa (CEMAC) and the other countries.

Over the first 6 months of 2014, Finance authorities announced a balance running on an overdrawn balance of the payments ascribable to the fall in the principal products of export, but a surplus of the external financings.