Government Finances
The revelation at the Nugent enquiry that the South African Revenue Services (SARS) may be more than R200bn short of its revenue targets in the current financial year is very disturbing because it makes further tax increases inevitable. We have already had an increase in the marginal tax rate to 45% and a 1% increase in VAT. These will most probably be followed by another jump in VAT to 17% or 18% and maybe increases in personal
The JSE and the Rand
The following two charts show the rand and the JSE Overall index over the same period – from 24th June 2013 up to today. The relationship between them is instructive.
JSE Overall Index July 2013 to June 2018 - Chart by ShareFriend Pro
Rand Dollar Exchange July 2013 to June 2018 - Chart by ShareFriend Pro
The JSE Overall index (J203) has always discounted the volatility of
Rand Weakness
In our Confidential Report of June 2018 published a week ago, we said the following: “In our estimation, the rand could weaken all the way back to the upper channel line – which would be at around R13.50 to the US dollar.” Since then the rand has weakened markedly, mainly because of dollar strength and the “risk-off” attitude which
Is the Correction Ending?
The progress of the world economy is predicated by what happens in America. If the US economy is thriving, then we are all doing well. Europe and the East (China and Japan) take their lead from America. With a $20 trillion economy, they are the largest unified economy in the world. Europe is slightly bigger – but nowhere near as homogenous. China and Japan are each roughly one third of the size of America – with China being