Who’s fooling who when electricity prices rise in a stagnating economy?
There are enough impediments to growth without also increasing the cost of manufacturing’s lifeblood
April is associated with the world-recognised Fool’s Day. This year, where the SA economy is concerned, the electricity price, which has been hiked more than 15.6%, could be part of that April madness.
The economy is facing challenges such as low growth, declining levels of investment and low production levels, with industrial capacity utilisation below 75% on average. The industrial landscape is characterised by several impediments, including rising electricity costs, unreliable electricity supply, rising logistical costs, an influx of cheap imports, insufficient demand and declining producer prices of manufactured goods. These have affected industrial companies by increasing their costs amid dwindling revenues, making industry unattractive to investment, which has in turn led to job losses...
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