The ban on the sale of cigarettes was one of the parts of the Covid-19 national state of disaster that we will remember for a long time. Everyone knew a guy and profits were made in the black market like never before. But what has happened since August when the ban was lifted? Researchers estimate that about 5% of smokers quit smoking, but among the rest, many more tax-free cigarettes are being smoked.

At the end of April, the special Covid relief grant of R350 per month was paid for the last time to 6.9 million unemployed adults. The expectation of the #PayTheGrants campaign was that the government would now introduce a basic income grant. There are several arguments for it, and one big one against it.

Aan die einde van Aprilmaand is die spesiale Covid verligtingstoelaag van R350 per maand vir die laaste keer betaal aan 6,9 miljoen werklose volwassenes. Die verwagting van die #PayTheGrants veldtog was dat die regering nou ʼn basiese inkomste toelaag gaan instel. Daar is verskeie argumente daarvoor, en een groot een daarteen.

Over the past few weeks, all three credit rating agencies, Moodys, Fitch and S&P, have left South Africa's credit rating unchanged. This is good news, but it also means that there is only so much time left to make some real reforms for growth.

Oor die afgelope paar weke het al drie kredietgraderingsagentskappe, Moodys, Fitch en S&P Suid-Afrika se kredietgradering onveranderd gelaat. Dit is goeie nuus, maar beteken ook daar is net soveel tyd oor om ware hervormings te maak.

The past week has shown that there is an art to making monetary policy. April's inflation rate rose sharply and the Reserve Bank's quarterly projection model indicated that the repo rate should also increase, but the Monetary Policy Committee left it unchanged.

Die afgelope week het gewys dat dit is ʼn kuns om monetêre beleid te maak. Aprilmaand se inflasiekoers het skerp gestyg en die Reserwebank se kwartaallikse voorspellingsmodel het aangedui dat die repokoers ook moet styg, maar die monetêre beleidskomitee het dit onveranderd gelaat.

South African research on economic mobility between income classes shows that a large number of people have escaped poverty over the last 15 years and can now be classified as vulnerable. Others progressed even further and became part of the middle class. It makes an economist excited that economic growth, as little as it has been, improves people's lives. The question is, what factors determine this progress? To get out of poverty it helps to have access to basic services, but to become middle class the key is a higher level of education and a job.

Suid-Afrikaanse navorsing oor ekonomiese mobiliteit tussen inkomste klasse wys dat ʼn groot aantal mense oor die laaste15 jaar uit armoede ontsnap het en nou geklassifiseer kan word as kwesbaar. Ander het nog verder gevorder en deel geword van die middelklas. Dit maak ʼn ekonoom opgewonde dat ekonomiese groei, so min soos wat dit was, mense se lewens verbeter. Die vraag is, watter faktore bepaal hierdie vordering? Om uit armoede te ontsnap help dit om toegang te kry tot basiese dienste, maar om middelklas te word is die sleutel ʼn hoër vlak van opleiding en ʼn werksgeleentheid.