Tag: capital formation

South Africa’s economy is in a mess, to say the very least, and all this is solely and exclusively the fault of policymakers. Everything has gone horribly wrong! Yet it is not all beyond redemption.

Ten children are invited to a birthday party. As they arrive, they are each given three golden tokens. The host explains that they will play various games with great prizes using these tokens. In the first game the prize is a brand-new bicycle, which the host says he will give to whichever child offers him the most tokens. This is the supply of desirable goods.

The GDP print for the fourth quarter of 2020 has come in better than expected, seeing markets respond positively in terms of rand strength and bond yields. Year-on-year GDP fell by 4.1% compared to the expected 4.6% decline, while on a quarter-on-quarter, annualised basis we saw a very strong 6.3% versus an expected 5.6%.

The National Minimum Wage (NMW) is a crime against the poor of this country as it absolutely forbids them from accepting any compensation below the floor set by government. It is reasonable, therefore, to assume that some people who could be working are not employed because of the minimum wage.