Ending the year with a flourish

We are ending our year in high spirits, with consumer confidence up 20 points since 2023, the inflation rate at a four-year low, interest rates on the decline, and our property sales and revenues well ahead of our targets for the year.

And it seems like the rest of South Africa is also in a good mood, partly because of the political stability created by the GNU and because we seem to be getting on top of our electricity supply problems, having had more than 250 days without loadshedding.

But probably also just because it is summer and many people are looking forward to beautiful braai weather, a break from work, and quality time spent with friends and family, because the Proteas have been winning, tourists are streaming in, and SA is getting more and more international recognition as a truly great place to live, work, and invest. We are all feeling the positive energy.

Meanwhile, the economy is already getting a boost from the R20-billion that consumers have withdrawn since the implementation of the two-pot retirement system - and the retail sector was delighted to report "Black Friday" spending of more than R30-billion last month.

Salaries and wages are also set to show real growth next year for the first time in a long while. On the strength of the current consumer exuberance and the GNU's economic reform plans, business confidence is now at its highest level since 2022, with the retail, wholesale trade, and building sectors leading the way.

In addition, all three major rating agencies have recently given SA the thumbs-up, with Standard & Poor's even revising SA's outlook from stable to positive. The country is making excellent progress towards getting off the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) grey list, possibly as early as June next year.

This would be a very positive development because it would not only boost SA's international economic reputation ahead of the G20 summit to be held in Johannesburg but also encourage greater capital inflows and foreign investment, and cut borrowing costs for both the government and SA businesses.

All in all, we currently have good reason to celebrate. At Chas Everitt, we would like to express our special gratitude to all our customers for their tremendous support over the past 12 months and to our amazing agents and leaders for the optimism, tenacity, and hard work that continue to light up our lives.

I wish you all a wonderful festive season, safe travels, and a very happy, healthy, and prosperous 2025.