Black middle class key to unlocking SA’s potential and other facts in Moody’s notes on SA
In a surprise move in the dead of night, Moody’s Investor quietly slipped through a set of research notes highlighting the good, the bad and the ugly of the South African economy. To be clear, the sovereign credit rating agency left a footnote at the bottom of its e-mail, pointing out that its research notes do not constitute any action — no downgrade, no affirmation, just staying put at Baa2 with a negative outlook. The good Here’s what Moody’s likes about SA’s economy: The country has well-developed financial markets and a well-capitalised banking sector; The Reserve Bank, the Treasury, the judiciary, the office of the public protector and the auditor-general are among the stars of SA’s institutions, helping to keep key players in check and accountable; and SA has low foreign currency debt. The bad Here’s what Moody’s doesn’t like so much: In the agency’s own words — "protracted political infighting". The credit rating agency thinks this is a stumbling block to policy certainty — ...
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