News in South Africa 18th August: 1. Food price warning: Economists have warned that drier weather conditions and recent developments in international trade could lead to food price increases. According to Stats SA, annual inflation for food and non-alcoholic beverages – a central reason for high headline inflation – dropped from 11.9% in May to […]
News in South Africa 7th August: 1. Government credibility scares off investors: The government’s lack of credibility due to its poor economic policy, unsustainable debt burden, and policy uncertainty adds to the risk premium on South African assets, making investors fearful of investing in the country. Following the South African Reserve Bank’s (SARB) Annual General […]
News in South Africa 2nd August: 1. US stripped of AAA rating: The US was stripped of its top-tier sovereign credit grade by Fitch Ratings, which criticized the country’s ballooning fiscal deficits and an “erosion of governance” that’s led to repeated debt limit clashes over the past two decades. The credit grader cut the US […]
News in South Africa 26th July: 1. Food price relief: South Africa’s food inflation should continue to decline, despite new risks facing agriculture in South Africa. According to Stats SA, Consumer Price Inflation (CPI) cooled from 6.3% in May to 5.4% in June – the lowest reading since 5.0% in October 2021. Crucially, annual inflation […]
News in South Africa 25th July: 1. Rand makes a comeback: The rand is looking set for a tough week ahead, with US rate hikes likely to weaken the local currency. The rand has been one of the worst-performing major currencies in the world and reached a record high of nearly $20.00/$ in May. The […]
News in South Africa 24th July: 1. Good week tainted by 2 industries: South Africa had a great week on the economic front last week, with Stats SA reporting a significant drop in inflation, the Reserve Bank holding on interest rates and the rand ending stronger against the dollar. However, economists at the Bureau for […]
News in South Africa 20th July: 1. Division over interest rate hikes: Economists are divided over whether South Africa’s central bank will pause interest-rate increases on Thursday, or extend its longest phase of monetary tightening since 2006. Deteriorating inflation expectations, currency risks and enhancements to the South African Reserve Bank’s quarterly projection model, used to […]
News in South Africa 19th July: 1. EU carbon levy impact: The European Union’s plan to put a carbon levy on imported goods from outside the bloc is an attempt to shift the burden for climate action to developing countries and may contravene World Trade Organization rules, South Africa said. The so-called carbon border adjustment […]
News in South Africa 13th July: 1. Stage 8 load shedding warning: South Africa’s sudden return to stage 6 load shedding after about a month of day-time suspensions of the rolling blackouts is not really a surprise, say energy experts – and the risk of things escalating remains a possibility. Eskom was forced to return […]
News in South Africa 5th July: 1. Severe water shortage: Experts are warning of a looming water crisis on a scale worse than load-shedding in South Africa as criminal syndicates have begun targeting water infrastructure to score tenders. Professor Anthony Turton from the Centre for Environmental Management at the University of the Free State warned […]
