The Reserve Bank has cut its growth forecasts for South Africa, predicting the economy could shrink by as much as four-percent in 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic, the national 21-day lockdown and the recent downgrades by credit rating agencies. The bank says growth was unlikely to exceed one-percent in 2021. In its bi-annual Monetary Policy Review the Reserve Bank says there is limited scope for a rebound and there are downside risks to the dire forecasts should the lockdown be extended. The country has reported one-thousand-655 coronavirus cases, the highest on continent, with eleven deaths. The Rand has crashed to an all-time low of above 19 to the dollar while bond yields have spiked - fueling fears of a financial and fiscal crisis. For a perspective on this,

Guest: Dr Thabi Leoka - an independent economist who also sits on Ramaphosa's Economic Advisory Panel