investor’s notebook
STEPHEN CRANSTON: The long view
I can’t say I am filled with joy when the Momentum and Unisa SA Household Wealth Index lands on my desk. What is concerning is that the latest report ends in December 2016, before all the wealth-destroying own goals by government this year. I can be quite cynical when a commercial enterprise such as a life office sponsors these reports. The underlying message is "financial circumstances will get even worse if you don’t buy our products". And Momentum surely wouldn’t sponsor this if its core clients, with their pools and double garages, were not being affected.People who earn their money honestly feel poorer, and this report proves it. The total real net worth fell by 1.7% in 2016 and in fact R102.5bn had been wiped off real wealth since the end of 2014. Most people won’t be surprised to hear that real net worth per household is at a similar level to what it was in 2012. This means fewer people will be able to retire and still maintain their living standards. Even at the height of de...
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