News in South Africa 8th March: 1. Recession looms: South Africa is on the edge of recession after printing a much more larger than expected contraction in gross domestic product (GDP) on Tuesday (7 March). According to the figures published by Stats SA, the country’s economy declined by 1.3% in the fourth quarter of 2022 […]
News in South Africa 7th March: 1. New minister of electricity: President Cyril Ramaphosa has announced changes to his executive – including two new ministries. During a twice-delayed address to the nation on Monday (6 March), the president revealed that Kgosientsho Ramokgopa would be appointed as the country’s new minister of electricity. He also revealed […]
News in South Africa 28th February: 1. Plans for stage 16 load shedding: Last week, Eskom System Operator GM Isabel Fick admitted that it is working with the National Energy Regulator of South Africa (Nersa) on preparing schedules beyond Stage 8. This was confirmed later by acting head of generation Thomas Conradie on Saturday, who said guidelines […]
News in South Africa 14th February: 1. Rand crashes through R18/$: The rand is trading on the wrong side of R18/$ for the first time in more than three months, as expectations grow that US interest rates may still climb much higher. On Monday morning, the local currency declined to R18.06/$, after trading around R17.50 […]
News in South Africa 6th December: 1. Politics draining rand: The South African rand clawed back some of its losses since the release of the explosive section 89 report on president Cyril Ramaphosa’s Phala Phala farm last week, but it remains in shaky space as political uncertainty persists. The rand recovered to around R17.19 a […]
News in South Africa 28th September: 1. Matric exams and load shedding: The KwaZulu Natal Education Department is raising concern over the impact that continual load shedding could have on students’ preparation for matric exams. Speaking to reporters, the MEC for the department, Kwazi Mthethwa, said that at some point this year, the national minister was engaged […]
News in South Africa 20th September: 1. Rand nears 2020 lows: The rand dipped early on Tuesday, trading near its weakest against the dollar since 2020, as financial markets braced for this week’s US Federal Reserve meeting where an aggressive interest rate hike is expected. At 0555 GMT, the rand traded at R17.69 against the […]
News in South Africa 14th September: 1. Truck looting spikes on roads: The looting and violent attacks on road freight logistics vehicles and the destruction of trucks and goods have begun to undo both the status of South Africa as a safe haven for investment and as an efficient logistics hub, for foreign traders, says […]
News in South Africa 13th September: 1. Tough future for Rand: The rand is expected to be beaten around by global markets in the coming months, as inflationary and interest rate pressure from central banks in the US and the European Union continue to dominate global market movements. The European Central Bank (ECB) hiked interest […]
News in South Africa 26th July: 1. The ‘real’ value of the rand: The Economist has updated its Big Mac Index for mid-2022, showing how the rand continues to be one of the most undervalued currencies globally, relative to the US dollar. The Big Mac Index is an initiative created by The Economist that aims […]
