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Cape Town - A roundup of Friday's top economic and finance reads on Fin24.
R1bn in PnP food debt shows consumers in dire straits, debt expert warns
The R1bn taken up by consumers in Pick n Pay food credit cards is a reflection of tight economic conditions as people resort to taking credit to feed their families, Debt Rescue said.
The supermarket group announced that 56 000 customers have taken up the store credit card to the value of R1bn since the product was launched in September 2017.
“The fact that they had raked up over R1bn in debt shows just how dire the situation has become,” said Debt Rescue CEO Neil Roets.
LIVE: Forensic probe confirms Steinhoff overstated income and assets
An independent and "unrestricted" investigation by PwC has uncovered the overstatement of income and assets at Steinhoff, at its annual general meeting in the Netherlands.
"[The investigation] confirmed a pattern of transactions undertaken over a number of years across avariety of assets classes that led to the material overstatement of income and asset values of the group," Steinhoff said in its AGM presentation on Friday.
Want to know what the Steinhoff leadership has to say? Follow Fin24's live updates to find out
Rand poised to hold its gains - analysts
The rand broke below the psychological R12/$ level this week and analysts expect it to hold onto its gains.
The local currency opened at R11.96 to the dollar on Friday morning and was trading at R12.07 to the greenback by 15:56. Analysts from NKC Economics expect the rand to trade within the range of R11.85 to R12.05 for the remainder of the day.
Should cryptocurrencies be taxed? What you need to know
Although SARS is correct that cryptocurrencies do not require a separate tax regime, the existing tax framework may need to incorporate cryptocurrencies to avoid confusion and potential unfairness, says a tax expert.
The advent of cryptocurrencies, and the substantial gains associated with investments in cryptocurrencies, caught the attention and interest of the world – and not least of all, that of the taxman. Because where money abounds, tax is normally to be collected.
Kganyago warns SA rate cut is no sure thing
South African Reserve Bank governor Lesetja Kganyago said it’s important to reduce consumer price expectations, signalling that last month’s drop in the inflation rate to a seven-year low is unlikely to prompt easier monetary policy.
“We would prefer that inflation expectations are closer to 4.5%,” Kganyago said in an interview with Bloomberg Television in Washington.
“That will build a cushion for South Africa because there are risks on the horizon.”
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