South African economy Archives - AfricaBusiness.com

Building a recession-ready business: the 3 Cs to weather any economic storm

15May

By Africa BusinessNo Comments

South Africa News

Building a recession-ready business: the 3 Cs to weather any economic storm

The South African economy recorded zero growth for the first quarter of 2023, following a fourth quarter of negative growth in 2022. The country is pointing towards a technical recession (defined as two consecutive negative quarters of growth)[1], despite Finance Minister Mr Enoch Gondwana ruling out the possibility just a few weeks ago[2]. The FNB/BER consumer confidence index (CCI) also fell to -23 points in Q1 2023 (down from -8 in Q4 2022), indicating increasing financial strain among consumers.[3] Yet as the economic climate sees consumers becoming more price conscious and thrifty, businesses in South Africa are facing unprecedented operational costs, resulting in price hikes to consumers. According to Chief Operating Officer, Craig Pitchers, at leading national courier service The...

Enhancing Connectivity Can Bolster Economic Diversification in South Africa, Offering Sustainable Growth and Benefits to All Citizens

Over the past 10 years, South Africa has been dealing with an economic and growing unemployment crisis that has placed the country in a dire situation. There is a growing need for economic development. However, in the past, the mining industry has been the major economic driver of a country that was once the biggest economy on the continent. However, the sector has faced significant challenges over the past two years, forcing President Cyril Ramaphosa to reiterate that we need to move towards a diversified economy. Access to a growing basic need In the wake of the Covid-19 Pandemic, the world is becoming increasingly digitised in order to address some of the main challenges caused by the Pandemic. In South Africa, this has traditionally been a problem. However, the Government's desire ...

Budget’s focus on taxpayer relief bodes well for bill payments

South African’s can say thank you to the Minister of Finance for providing some tax relief during his maiden Budget speech that will put money back into their pockets – something that bodes well for economic activity and the bill payments sector. In the 2022 Budget Speech, delivered by Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana on Wednesday, South Africa’s economic growth estimates sat at 4.8% and the real GDP growth of 2.1% is projected for 2022. These estimates reflect how the country has weathered global developments and South Africa’s own unique challenges, said Minister Godongwana. Yet Treasury remains focused on measures to offer South Africans some economic relief, and the budget includes R5.2 billion in tax relief to help support the economic recovery, provide some respite from fuel tax i...