ALTHOUGH the effect of Tuesday’s attacks in the United States was currently unknown there was no doubt it would have economic implications, SA Reserve Bank governor Tito Mboweni has warned. ”A lot will depend on how events unfold in the coming days and months,” he told the International Jubilee Conference of the Economic Society of SA in Johannesburg on Thursday night. ”The initial panic reaction in our market seems to be calming down and therefore one would expect that by next week the JSE Securities Exchange will see the All-Share Index back to where it was before the tragedy. One would also expect exchange rates to work the initial impact of this tragedy out of the equation.” However, Mboweni, who stayed opposite the World Trade Centre in New York only a week before the attack, said one factor which was critical to inflation targeting endeavours was the oil price. ”Whilst the initial reaction of the oil price was to shoot up, it seems that some calm may also be returning to this market. ”The assurances by Opec to do all they can to maintain oil price stability is something which gives us hope. But the jury is still out on this one,” he said. – Sapa