INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY
IT hardware costs ‘likely to rise’ in SA's low-growth economy
The weak economy and higher taxes are likely to prompt an acceleration into cloud-based computing, IT executive warns
Information technology (IT) hardware is likely to become more expensive in SA because of the weak economy and rand, according to Mark Walker, associate vice-president for sub-Saharan Africa at the International Data Corporation. "SA is looking at a growth rate of 0.7% to 1.5% [in 2018]. Many organisations are pricing this weak economy into their discussions as it means that hardware and imported equipment will be more expensive. "There are also murmurs around adding VAT to petrol and potential increases in taxes, so the technology sector could very well be an easy target from a tax point of view." As a result, IT was expected to become more expensive, particularly hardware, and this was likely to prompt "an acceleration into cloud-based computing", Walker said. Further, if the outcome of the ANC’s elective conference was not well received, the market would weaken further and this would fuel the rise in IT costs. Innovation and investment could be affected by the lacklustre economy, ...
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