We’d like to take this opportunity to wish all of our readers a happy new year and hope that 2024 will be a good one for all of you. This year will be interesting to say the least with a national election due in May and proposed changes to the retirement funding system being tabled. There will be lot of challenges this year but South Africans have proven themselves to be very resilient over the years and we will keep going. The team at Hansmeyer and Associates as always are ready and willing to assist so please reach out to us if you need assistance.
Indicators 9th January 2024
Gold bounces back from three-week low
Gold prices picked up on Tuesday from a three-week low, helped by a pullback in the dollar after an official US report showed that consumers expected lower inflation cemented bets for interest rate cuts from the US Federal Reserve. Read the full Business Day article here>
Rand flat as US dollar pauses
The rand was flat early on Tuesday, mirroring the pause in the dollar’s rally ahead of a highly anticipated reading on US inflation due later this week. Read the full Moneyweb article here>
Oil inches higher as Gaza war puts floor under prices
Oil prices rose slightly on Tuesday after sliding in the previous session, as markets weighed Middle East tensions against demand worries and rising oil cartel Opec supply. Read the full Business Day article here>
Interest rate relief for South Africa is coming
With local and global inflation looking like they are on a downward trend, South Africa is likely to follow other countries in cutting interest rates this year. Read the full Businesstech article here>
Asian markets gain after Wall Street tech surge
Asia’s stock indices were mostly higher on Tuesday after a tech-led surge on Wall Street as investors await the next set of US inflation numbers due this week, which could hint at when the Federal Reserve might start cutting interest rates. Read the full Business Day article here>
Two Pot Retirement System for South Africans
With a proposed implementation date of 1st September 2024, the two pot system will change the future of retirement planning in South Africa. In short, the two pot system includes –
1) a savings component which can be accessed once every tax year for emergencies. and
2) a retirement component i.e. 2/3 of your contributions which can only be accessed at retirement and must be used to buy a pension.
As further clarity is obtained from Government on the implementation of the system we will communicate these with you. A high level overview can be viewed here for your information.
New Brics Members
1st January saw the addition of 5 new member countries info the BRICS fold.
Interesting Stats
