CENTRAL BANKS ON TIGHTROPE
The Dubai debt crisis, though too small and localised to have detonated world markets, has been a reminder of the danger of exploding debt burdens. While Asian economies have rebounded strongly, a sustainable recovery in the West wi...
GIVING LIFE TO THE DESERT
By Razina Munshi
The quaint town of Matjiesfontein, fondly known as the Grand Duchess of the Karoo, is a good reminder that beauty is often found in unexpected places. The life of the town began in 1884. At the time locals wove reeds from the Baviaa...
ANOMALIES MAKE SENSE
By Carol Paton
It is bizarre that the SA Communist Party (SACP), on the left of the ANC alliance, has found it necessary to slap down the spectre of "nationali sation" raised by the rabble rousers in the ANC Youth League (ANCYL). It's equally odd ...
BITI'S BUDGET FIX
By Tony Hawkins
After an 11-year depression, Zimbabwe's economy is on the comeback trail with real GDP growth estimated at 4,7% this year and 7% in 2010. However, it's not that simple a fairy-tale recovery. Bickering between the three coalition pol...
GOVERNMENT STEPS UP
By Carol Paton
Government departments and state-owned enterprises involved in the infrastructure build programme will have to meet new targets for local procurement and local participation. The targets will be contained in a "stepped up" industria...
TEARS IN THE TWILIGHT ZONE
By Ian Fife
It breaks my heart walking through scores of shopping centres around SA - the dead eyes of empty stores stare forlornly at shoppers. Each store closing is a painful failure, especially for the mom and pops. These shops paid rents of...
CITROëN'S NEW DIRECTION
By David Furlonger
French carmaker Citroën hopes that by taking direct control of its SA subsidiary, it can undo some of the damage caused by foreign motor companies' piecemeal scramble for a slice of the local market at the turn of the century. The ...
HOPE FROM AN OLD REMEDY
By Jacqui Pile
A new way of tackling tuberculosis (TB) in the gold mining industry could cut prevalence rates and the cost of the treatment, compensation and management of TB among SA's mineworkers. SA's gold mining industry has the highest incide...
SHADES OF COLOUR
By Matebello Motloung
Despite accounting for 9% of the population and possessing spending power of about R80bn/year, the coloured market remains misunderstood and neglected. The perception of a market group containing a large number of gangsters and alcohol...
