Business Day Spotlight

The state of financial markets in the face of rising inflation and a fresh interest rate decision is the focus in this edition of the Business Day Spotlight.

Our host Mudiwa Gavaza is joined by George Glynos, co-founder, director and head of research at ETM Analytics.

Topics of discussion include: this week’s interest rate hike by the SA Reserve Bank; outlook for interest rates in SA and globally; how inflation has progressed through 2022; market performance for both equities and bonds; and the impact of US Dollar strength on the Rand.

The growth of digital storage is the focus in this edition of the Business Day Spotlight.

Our host Mudiwa Gavaza is joined by Ghassan Azzi, Western Digital sales director for Africa.

Topics of discussion include: Western Digital business in South Africa; the company’s intentions in the market; what its 2022/2023 strategy for Africa entails; an operational update; and insight into metrics around the size and scope of the company’s operations.

Wills as a instruments for better financial planning are the focus in this edition of the Business Day Spotlight.

Our host Mudiwa Gavaza is joined by Advocate Sankie Morata, a certified financial planner and CEO of Sanlam Trust.

The discussion focuses on reasons why people tend to not have wills in place; how wills fit into the financial planning of one’s life; the psychology of money in society and how that filters into issues of passing away without a will; how the law provides for situations where no will is in place; and way in which take up of such financial instruments can be improved.

In this edition of Business Day Spotlight, we examine the gains made in SA by one of the world’s largest device manufacturers, Oppo.

Our host Mudiwa Gavaza is joined by Liam Faurie, head of go to market and operations at Oppo SA.

The discussion focuses on the size and scope of Oppo’s operation globally and in SA; how Oppo has differentiated itself from its competitors in the smartphone industry; market dynamics in the local smartphone market; the company’s position on retail locations; and the relationships built with local mobile operators.

Consumer sentiment is at an almost 30 year low in SA. This is the focus in this edition of the Business Day Spotlight.

Our host Mudiwa Gavaza is joined by Mamello Matikinca-Ngwenya, FNB’s chief economist to discuss the results of their consumer confidence index (CCI), undertaken in collaboration with the Bureau for Economic Research.

Topics of discussion include: how the CCI is determined; results and findings of the latest study; impact of inflation on consumer confidence; pressures on different income groups in SA; ways in which government and private sector players can help ease the pressure on consumers and an outlook for the rest of the year.

SA’s unreliable electricity supply problem is the focus in this edition of the Business Day Spotlight, examining implications for the economy. 

Our host Mudiwa Gavaza is joined by Hilton Trollip, independent consultant in energy research and a research fellow in the Global Risk Governance programme at the University of Cape Town. 

Topics of discussion include: explaining what is meant by stage 6 load-shedding; reasons for the spate of rolling blackouts in SA; new power generation technologies; ways the state can fix issues at Eskom; and the urgent need for independent power production.

Bringing down the cost of stock market investment is the focus in this edition of the Business Day Spotlight.

Our host Mudiwa Gavaza is joined by Sebastian Patel, Franc’s COO and Thomas Brennan, Franc’s CEO.

Topics of discussion include: Franc’s business model; the problem that the company is looking to solve; how the business has been funded; new products; plans for the future; and trends in the retail investment sector.

The different ways in which buy now pay later (BNPL) is being applied in SA’s retail landscape is the focus in this edition of the Business Day Spotlight.

Our host Mudiwa Gavaza is joined by Craig Newborn, CEO of PayJustNow.

Topics of discussion include: PayJustNow’s journey as a business; the growth of BNPL in SA and other parts of the world; debt culture in SA; the growth of online retail spurred on by Covid-19; consumer trends in BNPL; the use of short term credit option in physical retail; and an outlook of how the space is likely to evolve over time.

Soaring inflation, cost pressures and dwindling economic prospects for consumers, business and government, is the focus in this edition of the Business Day Spotlight.

Our host Mudiwa Gavaza is joined by Jeffrey Schultz, senior economist at BNP Paribas SA.

Topics of discussion include: the latest consumer price index (CPI) figures for SA; reasons for the continued increase in living costs; ways in which governments and central banks around the world can work to stem the economic bleed; and rethinking globalisation.

The impact of old systems and technology in SA’s banks is the focus in this edition of the Business Day Spotlight.

Our host Mudiwa Gavaza is joined by Ria Pinto, country and general manager for SA at IBM.

Topics of discussion include: banking technology; defining legacy systems and why they matter; IBM’s relationship with the banking sector; ways in which systems can be improved; and the need for documenting systems and business processes.