You are poorer, but no need for panic
South Africans’ net wealth decreased in the third quarter of 2018 as they took on more debt and their assets diminished in value
Instead of panicking, investors should be increasing their exposure to the stock market, says investment guru Warren Ingram, despite a report showing a significant decline in the real value of households’ assets. The latest South African Household Wealth Index, a joint report by Momentum and Unisa, shows that the net wealth of local households decreased by almost R132bn in the third quarter of 2018 compared to the previous quarter due to a decline of R122.4bn in the real value of households’ assets and an increase of R9.3bn in the real value of outstanding debt and accounts. “The decreasing value of household assets can be ascribed to the declining value of their financial assets, which mainly consist of the value of their retirement funds and investments,” the report states. “At the same time, the increase in real household debt was driven by instalment sales, personal loans and credit card debt.” The authors point to both international and local pressures contributing to SA’s poor...
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