(Business in Cameroon) - According to a general audit report on the financials of the Central African States Bank (BEAC in French) at the close of December 31, 2014, foreign exchange reserves in the six CEMAC countries have declined by 1.127 trillion FCFA (falling from 4.974 trillion FCFA in 2013 to 3.847 trillion FCFA in 2014) last year. For that period, Cameroon’s reserves slumped by 171 billion FCFA.
However, the CEMAC zone’s economic engine has sustained smaller losses than the Congo (215 billion FCFA), Gabon (213 billion FCFA) and especially Equatorial Guinea (1.232 billion FCFA). The experts explain that the withering of foreign exchange reserves (resources necessary for CEMAC countries to execute their external transactions) is due to the decline in global oil prices. Five of the six CEMAC countries (the exception is the Central African Republic) are oil producers.
This analysis explains the reasons for the drastic downturn in Equatorial Guinean reserves and the substantial reduction for Gabon and Congo compared to Cameroon as the latter has a more diversified economy than the other CEMAC countries, particularly Gabon, Congo and Equatorial Guinea which are countries with economies that rely largely on oil.