Africa Economics Update South Africa: Treasury plan puts pressure on president The unexpected release of economic reform proposals by South Africa’s treasury is probably an attempt to push the president to announce a more ambitious plan at October’s budget speech. The plan... 29th August 2019 · 3 mins read
Africa Data Response South Africa CPI (Jul.) South African inflation slipped to just 4.0% y/y in July, supporting our view that policymakers will cut their policy rate from 6.50% to 6.25% in September. This is a strongly non-consensus view. 21st August 2019 · 2 mins read
Africa Economics Update South Africa: Tepid recovery in Q2, rate cut still likely June retail sales figures released today added to the evidence that the economy returned to growth in Q2. But the recovery was soft – we estimate around 1.6% q/q saar – and we still think that... 14th August 2019 · 2 mins read
Africa Economics Update South Africa: Rand weakness will continue We’ve cut our end-year rand forecast from an already below-consensus ZAR15/$ to ZAR16.5/$. While risks are growing, we’re holding to our view that the SARB will cut its policy rate by 25bp in... 12th August 2019 · 3 mins read
Africa Economics Update South Africa: Signs point to rebound in Q2 Despite the weak performance of the manufacturing sector, June activity data strengthened our view that South Africa returned to growth in Q2 after a sharp fall in Q1. Combined with recent currency... 8th August 2019 · 2 mins read
Africa Economics Focus South Africa: What is to be done? Hopes that President Cyril Ramaphosa can quickly revive South Africa’s economy are fading. The real problems are all structural, so even if he does make bold policy changes – far from guaranteed... 7th August 2019 · 20 mins read
Africa Data Response South Africa Manufacturing PMI (Jul.) South Africa’s PMI rebounded to 52.1 in July, adding to signs that the economy gained pace in the middle of the year. Even so, headline growth over 2019 as a whole will be tepid, and we still expect... 1st August 2019 · 2 mins read
Africa Data Response South Africa CPI (Jun.) South African inflation remained at the 4.5% mid-point of the target range in June, which strengthens our view that policymakers will follow up this month’s 25bp rate cut with another one in September... 24th July 2019 · 2 mins read
Africa Economics Update South Africa: Another cut likely in September Policymakers in South Africa will probably follow today’s 25bp cut with another 25bp of loosening at their next meeting in September. We expect that South African inflation will ease in Q3, while cuts... 18th July 2019 · 3 mins read
Africa Economics Update South Africa: Economy strengthened in May Activity data for May suggest that South Africa returned to growth in Q2. We estimate that GDP rose by about 1.0% q/q saar in the three months to May, and that activity strengthened further in June... 17th July 2019 · 2 mins read
Africa Economics Weekly Kganyago reappointed, rate cut likely next week The re-appointment of South Africa’s respected central bank governor will help to allay fears concerning the independence of the Reserve Bank. We think that policymakers will cut their policy rate... 12th July 2019 · 5 mins read
Africa Economics Update South Africa: More evidence of Q2 recovery Activity data for May added to the evidence that the economy rebounded following its contraction in Q1. Even so, we think that the Reserve Bank will cut its policy rate from 6.75% to 6.50% next week. 11th July 2019 · 2 mins read
Africa Data Response South Africa Manufacturing PMI (Jun.) South Africa’s manufacturing PMI picked up in June, but it still points to a poor performance in Q2. While the survey sometimes provides misleading readings, its consistent weakness suggests growth... 1st July 2019 · 2 mins read
Africa Economics Update South Africa: Ramaphosa has a dream, but few plans South Africa’s president provided essentially no policy detail in yesterday’s ambitious State of the Nation speech. Indeed, he seems to have walked back his plan of a relatively modest restructuring... 21st June 2019 · 1 min read
Africa Data Response South Africa CPI (Jun.) Inflation remained at the 4.5% mid-point of central bank’s target range in May, providing the space for policymakers to support the economy by cutting their key interest rate next month. 19th June 2019 · 1 min read
Africa Economics Weekly Naira rumours, South Africa recovery, Ethiopia reforms Despite this week’s mixed messages from Nigerian officials, we doubt that the country’s FX system will be reformed anytime soon. In South Africa, the latest activity data suggest that the economy... 14th June 2019 · 1 min read
