Ivory Coast’s economy will probably grow at a slower pace next year than previously forecast as investors hold back before presidential elections scheduled in October, Commerce Minister Jean-Louis Billon said. The economy of the world’s largest cocoa producer will probably expand 7.9% in 2015, Billion said by phone on Dec. 24 from the commercial capital, Abidjan, Bloomberg said. That’s down from 10 percent projected by the Budget Ministry this month. “It will be an election year, and they’re generally marked by hesitancy among investors,” Billon said. The biggest economy in francophone West Africa emerged from a decade of conflict and political instability in 2011 with a new president, Alassane Ouattara.
