Dave Mohr & Izak Odendaal, Old Mutual Multi-Managers US gross domestic product growth has slowed substantially over the past year to 1.3% year-on-year in the second quarter. In its latest round of global forecasts, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) cut its outlook for US growth for 2016 from 2.2% to 1.6% and 2017’s forecast from 2.5% to 2.2%. Consumer spending is the main engine of growth, supported by low inflation and decent job growth. Headline inflation is below 1% and core inflation, which excluded volatile food and energy prices, is below 2%. Declines in business investment, partly due to the low oil price, are largely to blame for the slower growth. Against this backdrop, it seems a bit strange to be considering interest rate increases. Yet several Fed officials, including previously dovish ones, have in the past few weeks argued the case for a rate increase later this year. They are somewhat supported by US economic data including the ISM indices that rebounded in Sep...

David Marobe One of the surest ways to grow an inclusive economy and realise the goals set out in the 2030 National Development Plan is by investing in entrepreneurs, who are critical to the development and well-being of any society. Government and the private sector need to work together to support small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and can best do so by not only having procurement set-asides but efficiently implementing these as well and providing targeted technical assistance. This is according to David Morobe, Regional General Manager at Business Partners Limited (BUSINESS/PARTNERS) , who believes that SMEs have the ability to scale up to Government’s and private sector’s procurement demands when given the opportunity and necessary guidance. “Procurement preference is a well-recognised source of SME support, however, there is a perception that SMEs are risky and unreliable suppliers, or that they don’t have capacity or the capabilities to supply according to set requireme...

Ben Bierman In the current economic landscape, South African businesses find themselves fighting to overcome one headwind after the next. This constantly changing environment is negatively impacting small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and business owners’ growth projections for 2016. As a result SMEs’ confidence levels about economic and business growth declined significantly in the last quarter. This is according to Ben Bierman, Chief Financial Officer of Business Partners Limited (BUSINESS/PARTNERS), who was commenting on the overall sentiment of business owners and the findings of the latest Business Partners Limited SME Index (BPLSI), which measures the attitudes and confidence levels of South African SME owners. The Q4 2015 BPLSI revealed a significant decline in confidence levels that the South African economy will be conducive for business growth in the next 12 months - a decrease of 6 percentage points from the third quarter to a recorded confidence level of only 51%...

Christo Botes While the country and the world may be facing economic woes, it doesn’t mean it is all doom and gloom for South Africa’s local entrepreneurs. This is the sentiment of Christo Botes, spokesperson for the 2016 Entrepreneur of the Year® competition - sponsored by Sanlam and BUSINESS/PARTNERS .  “South Africa faced a number of challenges over the past 12 months, including a weakening rand, ongoing power shortages, student protests, and growing water crisis. This year also began with its own trials as we saw the rand weakening further plummeting to an all-time low, and the enduring water shortages remain a major threat to various industries,” says Botes.  Botes says that this signifies that each year has its own set of challenges, yet at the same time, also brings new opportunities and business prospects for entrepreneurs to capitalise on. “Now more than ever, entrepreneurs should take charge and carve out their own futures by seizing the opportunities avai...

Business owners who steered their enterprises through the financial crash that started in 2008 may experience a familiar dread when they look at the storm clouds gathering on the 2016 business horizon. This is according to Nazeem Martin, Managing Director of Business Partners Limited (BUSINESS/PARTNERS) who says that a number of factors point towards the possibility that 2016 may be as tough for business owners as 2008 and 2009 was, while others factors suggest it could be less turbulent. “Similar to the situation in 2008, the South African economy is at the mercy of adverse global economic forces. Growth in China is at a 25-year low, and with it the prices of commodities. Europe is still struggling to recover from the last crash and even positive developments seem to conspire against us: the recovery of the US economy is pushing up interest rates there, pulling investments away from emerging markets such as ours. “Locally, South Africa's worst drought in a century is boun...