Shale gas could be 'game changer' for Free State

The possible discovery of large recoverable shale gas reserves in the Karoo Basin, which includes parts of the Free State, could be a 'game changer' in the South African energy industry, Sasol Petroleum International MD Ebbie Haan has said in a media statement.

Read more...

According to analysts, South Africa's debilitating public sector and automobile strikes may be difficult to quantify in economic terms, but the recent violence means reputational damage that could upset foreign investment. While indirect repercussions to the economy will result from lack of delivery and added aggravation, direct repercussions would be felt when the private sector's productivity is impinged via any transport problems that may erupt. Chief economist from Economists.co.za, Mike Schussler, says the dynamic in SA of a high public sector wage bill relative to their number relat ive to GDP is a problem that has to be looked at. Adding to the problem is that government workers are already better paid on average than their private sector counterparts, including state-owned enterprises, they get 142 % of what the private sector gets.

GDP growth data just released by Statistics South Africa confirms that the country’s economic growth rate, at 3,2% in the second quarter, remains far behind the sustained 7% growth rate that the economy needs in the foreseeable future to create jobs and reduce poverty. Meanwhile evidence indicates that the BRIC economies are emerging with strong economic growth prospects. Although South Africa aspires to membership of this club, entry remains elusive given our sluggish and precarious recovery from the crisis and increasingly mixed signals over the direction of the SA economic policy.