Industrialized countries advanced by means that have been impermissible to the developing world, write Anis Chowdhury and Jomo Kwame Sundaram. By Anis Chowdhury in Sydney and Jomo Kwame Sundaram in Kuala Lumpur Inter Press Service The notion of the BRICS (Brazil, Russia,…Read more →
“This is a Budget that plants a seed for renewal and growth.” Tito Mboweni
Should Ramaphosa establish a Growth Commission? [GCIS]
In his maiden budget in February 2019, Tito Titus Mboweni, the current Minister of Finance, said he was planting a new seed as he walked a tight rope between what the ratings agencies would allow before a downgrade and what was needed to provide policy certainty.
There was no way that the Treasury would be able to provide R100bn in debt relief to Eskom in one go, so instead he provided R69bn spread over three years.
Greater regulatory certainty has unleashed the “animal spirits”.
Exxaro will spend R20bn to expand coal production by 19.8 Mtpa
Courtesy of Exxaro
Exxaro executive head of coal Dr Nombasa Tsengwa told the 14th Annual Southern African Coal Conference that Exxaro will be spending R20bn over the next five years to expand production capacity by 19.8 million tonnes per annum (Mtpa) from the 2017 production of 47 Mtpa.
This involved seven separate projects and the mines involved are Grootgeluk, Thabametsi, Dorsfontein, Mafube, Leeuwpan, Matla and Belfast.
With only weeks to go to Brexit’s target date, there is deadlock in the British parliament, recriminations on both sides, and, writes Russell Merryman, a growing realisation that what was promised might be impossible to deliver.
Anti-Brexit sentiment is growing as the deadline for Article 50 approaches [MERRYMAN]
We’ve all heard of the thought experiment involving a cat and a piece of radioactive material locked together in a box, the decaying material could, at any moment, give off an atomic particle which would kill the cat.
Provincial rates show large dispersion between 5.3 per cent and 3.6 per cent
Inflation rates were highest in areas of South Africa most affected by years of drought [PREUSS]
The annual average South African consumer inflation rate of 4.7 per cent was better than expected by most economists after the Value-Added Tax rate was raised to 15 per cent from 14 per cent on April 1 and amidst higher fuel costs for most of the year.
Deals worth $32.6 billion announced
After the success of the IATF, Egypt will next host a meeting with BRICS countries [PREUSS]
The inaugural Intra-Africa Trade Fair (IATF) held in Cairo from 11 to 17 December exceeded the targets set by the organising committee when they approached the Afreximbank for sponsorship.
The ambitious targets the committee set was to attract at least 30 African country pavilions, get at least 1,000 exhibitors and be able to say agreements worth at least $25 billion were signed at the IATF.
South African Trade Minister Rob Davies punts Intra-Africa Trade
Cairo, Egypt hosted the first-ever Intra-African Trade Fair (IATF) from December 11 to 17, 2018 [PREUSS]
Actual quarterly growth rate was 2.2% versus consensus forecast of 1.6 per cent, while annual growth was 1.1% versus consensus forecast of 0.5 per cent
The National Treasury building in Pretoria [PREUSS]
The Gross Domestic Product (GDP) data released by Statistics South Africa (Stats SA) exceeded the Reuters consensus forecast of a 1.6 per cent seasonally adjusted annualized (saa) increase in the third quarter on the second quarter by almost a half, as the actual rise was 2.2 per cent.
