Tag: global trade

There has been a noticeable shift in global trade. While it might feel distant, it is already knocking on South Africa’s door. Tariffs are climbing again, fast and hard. Our research shows that the average US tariff rate has risen from around 2.4 percent at the end of 2024 to 29 percent today. That is the highest level in over a century.

In global trade and investing, one truth never changes: timing matters. Nowhere is this more evident than in foreign exchange. Even small shifts in currency values can change the cost of sending money abroad or affect the returns on an offshore investment. Timing is everything in these situations.

South Africa can take many lessons from the UAE and Saudi Arabia and how they have fortified themselves against the impact of US trade tariffs. In an era marked by shifting global trade dynamics, Middle Eastern countries have showcased impressive foresight and agility.

In our 2022 Insurance State of the Market report, we have unpacked key global insurance market trends as well as local trends that are affecting the insurance market in a volatile and unpredictable world.

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has opened fault lines between nations which will affect trade relations and investment for years to come. The war in Ukraine is already having a significant effect on inflation and activity in the world economy as commodity prices have soared and supply chains have been disrupted.

2020 challenged all of us. The most severe economic contraction in decades triggered vast monetary accommodation and fiscal support packages that altered the investment landscape. Now, as we approach 2021, the promise of COVID-19 vaccines is game changing. It encourages us to anticipate a return to pre-pandemic activities.

Although we all know the coronavirus that causes COVID-19 first emerged in China, there is some debate as to exactly when. As it spread through the city of Wuhan, authorities took what at the time seemed like an extraordinary decision to place the whole metropolitan area in quarantine from late January onwards.

The spread of coronavirus, COVID-19, beyond China has created fresh uncertainty for the global growth outlook and sparked volatility in financial markets. Outbreaks in South Korea, Iran and Italy have raised concerns that the spread outside of China may be accelerating.

In celebration of DHL’s fiftieth anniversary as a world-leading delivery company, former CEO of DHL - Ken Allen – shares the inspiring story of his journey to the top of the industry in his recently launched memoir, Radical Simplicity. The book demonstrates how simplicity successfully transformed a loss-making mega brand into a world-class performer.

Two months into President Cyril Ramaphosa’s new government for the next five years, South Africans have been made aware of the stark reality of a higher-than-anticipated contraction in the economy in the first quarter of 2019. While the JSE all share index rebounded in June, it comes off a miserable month of May.