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what is up with the rand?


Witkop

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As much as you might personally like an interest rate cut, I don't think you can question the Monetary Policy Committee's track record. South Africa has the second highest rating of the BRICS countries, and a rather impressive 4th place in financial market development. If anything, it's our labour practices that are hampering our economic growth (followed by lack of skills).

 

Anyway, the Reserve Bank's mandate is inflation control (which they are doing a great job with), not exchange rate control. We simply don't have the currency reserves to prop up our currency against the likes of the dollar. A weak rand is good for exports and tourism, our two key economic sectors.

 

I agree with you, however. Inflationary pressures will mostly come from abroad, oil price being the primary reason. Should we exceed the upper band of 6% but show no economic growth (which is possible given that we took a huge knock last quarter), monitoring inflation is going to get very tricky. A number parties are going to complain given that higher interest rates will be detrimental to economic growth.

 

Will they be creative enough or will they shift policy to make sure that we do not head for stagflation?

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We have a sovereign debt crisis worldwide as well as a European Banking crisis. This leads to everybody avoiding risk and running to traditional safe havens. Emerging market currencies suffer the most during these times as a higher yield normally translates into a higher risk.

That's some deep stuff there, krl747...

Le'me wrap my cognitive abilities around that post.

 

:)

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If you don't buy at Woolworths, it's not that expensive.

 

I dunno, PnP is just as bad.

Every time I pop into Pnp it is a XT front Dérailleur. End of month it is at least a XTR rear Dérailleur and XTR 9sp Cassette. I don't know which is more crazy, the price of food or components.

And then there is Electricity!

 

Got me some chickens to supply me with eggs. Starting with the veg and herb garden next. It is the only way.

Edited by YUMEYA
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Is this not just a cyclical phenomenon. Such as circa 04 and 07. I remember the days of 12 to dollar and more. Doesn't it all just correct itself to true values at some point?

 

Yes it will, but its the damage it do's in between that matters.

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I agree with you, however. Inflationary pressures will mostly come from abroad, oil price being the primary reason. Should we exceed the upper band of 6% but show no economic growth (which is possible given that we took a huge knock last quarter), monitoring inflation is going to get very tricky. A number parties are going to complain given that higher interest rates will be detrimental to economic growth.

 

Will they be creative enough or will they shift policy to make sure that we do not head for stagflation?

 

That is the question, and as I said I dont think so, so far they have done nothing but sit on their hands, so to me its not promising.

 

People like to waffle on about debt crisis and euro weakness, we know all that, any 10th grader will tell you about it, its old hat, what matters here is how the monetary committee is responding to assist and protect business and helping them on the coal face in managing these cost pressures every day.So far I see nothing.

 

Sitting in a plush high backed leather chair and pontificating on the euro zone crisis, while doing nothing to control the currency (which is a major contributor to inflation here) is quite pointless. But then again in my opinion we are very good at telling everyone else to get their house in order, but we are very slow to do so ourselves.

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I dunno, PnP is just as bad.

Every time I pop into Pnp it is a XT front Dérailleur. End of month it is at least a XTR rear Dérailleur and XTR 9sp Cassette. I don't know which is more crazy, the price of food or components.

And then there is Electricity!

 

Got me some chickens to supply me with eggs. Starting with the veg and herb garden next. It is the only way.

 

Yeah, like that TV show "The good life", where the guy turns his suburban home into a small self contained farm....much to his neighbours disapproval. :D

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Yeah, like that TV show "The good life", where the guy turns his suburban home into a small self contained farm....much to his neighbours disapproval. :D

Is a good idea. I've got a head start. Got 2 massive avo trees that are excellent producers, but I'm a *** farmer. Between the monkeys (airborne) and labradors (landborne), I have to still buy mine from Spar. Maybe need a scarecrow. Got healthy dogs though.

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I dunno, PnP is just as bad.

Every time I pop into Pnp it is a XT front Dérailleur. End of month it is at least a XTR rear Dérailleur and XTR 9sp Cassette. I don't know which is more crazy, the price of food or components.

And then there is Electricity!

 

Got me some chickens to supply me with eggs. Starting with the veg and herb garden next. It is the only way.

 

I was reading on another forum this morning about a King Steer burger, medium chips and 500ml coke costing R61.95 now.

 

WTF?

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I was reading on another forum this morning about a King Steer burger, medium chips and 500ml coke costing R61.95 now.

 

WTF?

Jip, I am already on half loaf, couple of slices of polony, cheese and a small tub of atchar!

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Jip, I am already on half loaf, couple of slices of polony, cheese and a small tub of atchar!

 

Dude, I gave up years ago. I make my own bread, grow at least half my own veggies, am almost finished with the thing to keep rabbits in. Can't tell you how much it helped when I was unemployed for 4 or so months this year.

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Dude, I gave up years ago. I make my own bread, grow at least half my own veggies, am almost finished with the thing to keep rabbits in. Can't tell you how much it helped when I was unemployed for 4 or so months this year.

 

It is the only way forward. We need to go old school.

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Is a good idea. I've got a head start. Got 2 massive avo trees that are excellent producers, but I'm a *** farmer. Between the monkeys (airborne) and labradors (landborne), I have to still buy mine from Spar. Maybe need a scarecrow. Got healthy dogs though.

 

Yeah, I dont have a green finger either, more like a black thumb actually as everything I plant dies.

 

My wife has a little herb garden she likes to tend, but the seedlings cost 20 bucks at the nursery, it takes three months to grow enough for any meaningful dish, and once its picked you start all over again, so its actually cheaper and easier to just buy a packet of herbs at Spar for 5 bucks. :D

 

....but hey, she enjoys it, so its all good.

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I was reading on another forum this morning about a King Steer burger, medium chips and 500ml coke costing R61.95 now.

 

WTF?

 

 

When I worked there part time in '94-5, it was something like R15.

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This is the first intelligent conversation that i have seen on the hub in a while. Good work guys. So where is the best place to put my money right now?

 

 

Ah, so that is why I can't understand much of it

Edited by Pronutro
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