News in South Africa 28th February: 1. Great news for braai lovers: The Bureau for Food and Agricultural Policy (BFAP) latest food inflation brief points to an easing of meat prices in South Africa across the board – even for chicken pieces, following a heavy-hitting avian flu crisis at the end of 2023. The group […]
News in South Africa 27th February: 1. Major new financial laws: The highly anticipated Conduct of Financial Institutions (COFI) Bill is set to have major ramifications across several industries. Although the Bill is unlikely to be tabled before Parliament rises ahead of the elections on May 29 2024, marketplaces are both excited and cautious. The Bill […]
News in South Africa 26th February: 1. South Africans are poorer: An analysis of household finances shows that real salaries have deteriorated in 2023, with South Africans going into more financial distress in the final quarter of last year. This is according to Investec chief economist Annabel Bishop, who pointed to data from BankservAfrica that […]
News in South Africa 22nd February: 1. 2024 Budget speech in a nutshell: Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana delivered the 2024 National Budget Speech on Wednesday, 21 February. The budget touched on many points and topics, including the country’s current economic standing, growth estimates, the massive debt servicing costs, heightened sin tax proposals and the extension […]
News in South Africa 20th February: 1. Rand weakens: The rand has weakened with the market worried about South Africa’s marked fiscal slippage. In the 2023 Medium-Term Budget Policy Statement (MBTPS), gross debt was projected to peak at 77.7% of GDP in 2025/26, far higher than February 2023’s Budget estimate of 73.6%. Investec Chief Economist […]
News in South Africa 19th February: 1. Petrol price storm approaches: South African consumers are heading into a fuel price storm, with a petrol and diesel hike coming in March, possible fuel tax hikes in April, and the wider impact on transport, shelf prices and inflation likely to be felt in the months that follow. […]
News in South Africa 16th February: 1. Bad news for taxpayers: The Finance Minister will likely announce an increase in tax rates in the Budget Speech later this month as the government’s revenue collections continue to disappoint, leaving a gap of R15 billion to be filled. This is feedback from financial services firm PwC, which […]
News in South Africa 13th February: 1. SA’s biggest risks: The biggest risks to South Africa’s 2024 economic outlook may come from insufficient power supply, strains on debt sustainability and the erosion of state legitimacy ahead of elections, according to Allianz. The global financial services giant estimates that South Africa’s economy will expand by 1.4% […]
News in South Africa 12th February: 1. Budget Speech incoming: Budget Speech season is here and based on Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana’s mid-term presentation, we can expect many complex challenges to be unpacked. Godongwana has projected that the government will miss its revenue targets by nearly R57 billion for the 2023/24 tax year, and then […]
News in South Africa 6th February: 1. Consumer relief on the horizon: Battered by low wage growth, high interest rates, and increasing debt levels, many South African consumers are in the worst financial shape they’ve been in for years, maybe even decades. The result is a persistently weak economy. This faltering economy, driven mostly by […]
