Congo averts recession in 2020 thanks to mining sector strength

GOMA, Democratic Republic of Congo, Feb 16 (Reuters) - D emocratic Republic of Congo's economy averted an expected pandemic-induced recession in 2020 to grow 0.8% on the back of strong mining activity, a central bank official said on Tuesday.

GOMA, Democratic Republic of Congo, Feb 16 (Reuters) - D emocratic Republic of Congo's economy averted an expected pandemic-induced recession in 2020 to grow 0.8% on the back of strong mining activity, a central bank official said on Tuesday. Growth is expected to rise to 3.2% this year, the official, Plante Kibadhi, said in a tweet.

The International Monetary Fund projected last April that Congo's economy would contract by 2.2% in 2020 because of a fall in prices for key exports like copper and the impact of the coronavirus pandemic. The price of copper, of which Congo is Africa's biggest producer, has rallied by 93% since last March. It briefly touched its highest point since 2012 on Tuesday, driven by optimism over Chinese demand and the global economic recovery.