Tag: lockdown

COVID-19 cannot take all the blame for the disruptions taking place in the global economy. The pandemic and resultant lockdown simply provided a conduit for highlighting the failings across industries in South Africa, whether that is healthcare, public transport, education, or others.

Leverage virtual meeting tools and capabilities to cement customer and employee relationships. The current coronavirus pandemic has caused many countries such as UK, USA, Italy, Spain, South Africa and Germany, among others to follow a lockdown approach.

Companies have been facing tough decisions over the past few months, particularly those with employees who cannot work during the crisis. The South African lockdown during the COVID-19 pandemic has had a significant impact on industry, market and business.

The rapid changes experienced over the past few months and leading to the current relaxation of lockdown levels, has resulted in the South African economy’s recovery taking the shape of a ‘swoosh’ of a fast decline then a quick recovery that will take time to be fully realised.

On Tuesday Stats SA announced that SA’s GDP had contracted 51% between April and June (using annualised quarter on quarter numbers – in other words, this is a 17% decrease for the quarter) as a result of the lockdown imposed in response to Covid-19. The contraction was shocking – but not unexpected. Given that government took the decision to implement one of the harshest and longest lockdowns globally, the severity of the economic contraction should not come as a surprise.  

Real GDP surprised the market consensus to the downside in the second quarter of 2020 as the effects of the pandemic and the associated lockdown measures ate into economic activity. Growth contracted by 51% q/q saar and printed lower than the August 2020 Reuters Econometer median growth forecast of 44.5% p/p saar.

Our 2020 Global Entrepreneurship Survey found that entrepreneurs who had a website were less likely to close their businesses during COVID-19 lockdowns than those without one. We also discovered that those with a website were more optimistic about future growth, with 31 percent projecting growth of at least 50 percent versus only 23 percent of those without a website.

Life in a Time of Plague is the story of Britain under the first 75 days of its unprecedented COVID-19 lockdown, seen from the author's rural East Sussex valley home. From the refuge of a seemingly idyllic country idyll, the book monitors in bleak and forensic detail the failure of the Government to protect Britain, and its woeful response at every stage of the pandemic.

An interview with Lauren Salt, Executive, Employment, ENSafrica, and Dr Ivor Blumenthal, CEO, ArkKonsult, discussing the most recent changes to the Unemployment Insurance Fund (UIF) Temporary Employer/Employee Relief Scheme (TERS), also referred to as UIF TERS - specifically the new directive 2.3.1,  the implications for employers claiming benefits and the future of the COVID-19 relief scheme.

An interview with Jason Sive, CEO, Mobicred, and Dr Ivor Blumenthal, CEO, ArkKonsult, discussing how shopping behaviour adoption rates and purchasing trends have altered as a result of the lockdown.