Treasury’s growth projection of 1.3% for 2017, made in the February budget review, remains at risk, Finance Minister Malusi Gigaba said in Parliament on Wednesday, but he is optimistic that "reasonable" growth in GDP may materialise in the quarters ahead. Gigaba made opening remarks ahead of a presentation by Treasury officials on the department’s quarterly report to the standing committee on finance. He said the global economy continued to grow moderately, supported by stronger trade and industrial production. The International Monetary Fund expected global growth to accelerate in 2017 and 2018, although risks to medium-term growth remained biased towards the downside. Global financial markets had been supportive of emerging markets and commodity prices had risen in the year — "This is a critical opportunity for our economy which we must take advantage of," he said. The government’s action plan was aimed at restoring confidence in the short term and also laying the foundations for ...
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