South Africa’s Minister of Trade and Industry, Mandisi Mpahlwa, speaking during the current South African-Italian Business Forum, said that he would not like foreigners to fear black economic empowerment (BEE), but rather that they understand the economic imperative underlying it.
The South African Chamber of Business’s (Sacob) business confidence index (BCI) has declined further to 99,1 in June from 100,2 in May and 101,9 in April, Sacob data on Thursday showed. The index had edged up to 101,9 in April after declining to 99,5 in March, and this came after it had dipped to 101,5 in January.
A properly implemented social-security system can benefit South Africa even more than it has Chile, Dr José Piñera — former presidential candidate and architect of Chile’s highly successful social-security system — said on Thursday. He said the spectre of bankrupt, government-run social-security systems is haunting the world.
South African Reserve Bank Governor Tito Mboweni says the higher-than-expected CPIX (consumer inflation less mortgage costs) at 6,4% year-on-year in May — released on Wednesday morning — would "spoil the party further". He indicated in a speech on Wednesday evening that when interest rates were low, many people went on spending sprees.
Africa remains on the march to economic prosperity with growth of 6% expected in 2007 from 5,6% this year, said the United Nations in its mid-year <i>World Economic Situation and Prospects Report</i>, launched in Johannesburg on Monday. "Strong growth is expected to continue into 2008," the report says.
South African money market rates are currently close to factoring in a full chance of a rate hike of 50 basis points in June. In a speech earlier in the month the central bank governor, Tito Mboweni, sounded hawkish as he highlighted risks to the inflation outlook.
With the South African economy expected to continue to grow slightly above potential this year, underlying inflationary pressures persist and the risk of higher rates remains skewed to the upside, say leading global economic analysts Moody’s Economy.com.
The rand has broadly stabilised and this is a much better level for the currency to be at, according to Professor Ben Smit, director of the Bureau for Economic Research (BER), who was speaking during a conference on Thursday morning."It is relatively stable within a relatively broad band," said Smit.
The dip in South Africa’s manufacturing production growth to 5,2% year-on-year (y/y) in March from 7,2% in February is still above the 2006 average of 4,8% y/y. Volume growth was at just 4,5% in December last year and the growth in 2007 continues to reflect strong growth.
Nominal house-price growth of 15,5% year-on-year was recorded in April from a revised 15,7% in March, according to the latest Absa house-price index. This brings the average price of a house in the survey to R911Â 800 in April. On a month-on-month basis, nominal price growth declined further to 0,9% in April.