August 2023

31 August 2023 – Despite the pain of load shedding, South Africa’s GDP for Q2 is expected to see growth. Bank of America (BofA) Global Research said that the moderating power cuts in June compared to April and May should help boost economic activity. In addition, mining and manufacturing data for Q2 showed better-than-expected growth […]

29 August 2023 – In a promising turn of events for the South African economy, Statistics South Africa (Stats SA) has unveiled its latest report, highlighting a substantial decline in the number of company liquidations in July 2023. The decrease, which amounts to an impressive 15.2% compared to the same month in 2022, signals a

28 August 2023 – BRICS nations have agreed to look into ways to deepen trade and investment among themselves as they continue to consolidate their dominance in emerging economic markets. Busi Mabuza, the chairperson of the five BRICS Business Council chapters, yesterday vowed to increase their contribution to the global economy from the current 23%

25 August 2023 – Since it’s integration into the BRICS, trade between South Africa and the other BRICS countries has been underwhelming. Agbiz chief economist Wandile Sihlobo said that BRICS members account for a relatively small share of South Africa’s agriculture exports, an average of 8% over the past 10 years, amounting to US$9,9 billion (about R184

24 August 2023 – Emerging market (EM) equities sank to two-month lows yesterday as the latest stimulus measures from China disappointed investors and economic data out of the country has worsened, market analysts said yesterday. The MSCI’s EM equities index fell 0.4% to mark its eighth consecutive day in the red yesterday, and it was

23 August 2023 – While the wine and brandy industry is still reeling from the impacts of Covid-19, and a few challenges are poised to persist into the future, industry body South Africa Wine (SA Wine) says the tide is indeed turning and conditions are slowly looking up. SA Wine CEO Rico Basson says the local wine and brandy

22 August 2023 – South Africa’s focus on the BRICS bloc, in terms of agricultural exports, must not be at the expense of other important markets in the continent. This is according to an economist, Wandile Sihlobo, while defending his call for the country to focus on the bloc, which is an acronym for Brazil,

21 August 2023 – Research organisation the Bureau for Food and Agricultural Policy (BFAP) finds in its latest outlook for the agriculture sector over 2023 to 2032 that the sector is experiencing mounting pressure and challenges that are hampering the extent to which it can continue contributing to gross domestic product (GDP). Speaking during the

18 August 2023 – South Africa will likely keep its preferential access to US markets because hundreds of American firms are also benefitting, according to the nation’s ambassador to BRICS. “I don’t think there is any serious threat of us losing preferential access to AGOA. AGOA is not a one-way issue, trade is not a

17 August 2023 – It is currently taking an average of 25 months for government to complete import duty investigations and to provide the necessary Ministerial approvals for the South African Revenue Service to implement duty increases or reductions, a new report shows. Compiled by XA Global Trade Advisors, the analysis also highlights a marked slowdown in