Orthofer on SA wealth and income
Given high inequalities in South Africa, there has been much interest in the work of the French economist, Thomas Piketty, suggesting that capitalism naturally leads to a growing wealth-income ratio and unsustainable inequality. Recently, a PhD student at Stellenbosch, Anna Orthofer (supervisor: Stan du Plessis), investigated historical data for South Africa and found that in at least some respects, South Africa does not seem to match the rich countries analysed by Piketty, and that the wealth-income ratio has in fact been relatively low and stable. Read more about this in a recent Financial Mail article.
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Topic: "Two competing approaches in South African competition policy: merger control and anti-cartel enforcement over the past 30 years"
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BER Weekly
25 Jul 2025 Budget hurdle cleared, but US tariff implementation remains a riskIt was another big week on the local political front, but with some constructive momentum. On the trade front, ahead of next week’s 1 August deadline, Trump announced another “massive” trade deal with Japan. The upcoming week is busy, with a slew of global and domestic data releases and several monetary policy decisions, including the SARB....
Read the full issue
Upcoming Seminars
Monday 04 August 202512:00-13:00
Prof Willem Boshoff: Stellenbosch University
Topic: "Two competing approaches in South African competition policy: merger control and anti-cartel enforcement over the past 30 years"
12:00-13:00
Professor Johan Fourie: Stellenbosch University
Topic: "Economic History: TBC"
12:00-13:00
Dr Stephen Taylor: Director In Education & Research Fellow Stellenbosch
Topic: "TBC"
BER Weekly
25 Jul 2025 Budget hurdle cleared, but US tariff implementation remains a riskIt was another big week on the local political front, but with some constructive momentum. On the trade front, ahead of next week’s 1 August deadline, Trump announced another “massive” trade deal with Japan. The upcoming week is busy, with a slew of global and domestic data releases and several monetary policy decisions, including the SARB....
Read the full issue