Key View

• The recent floods in KwaZulu-Natal (KZN), the increased expectation for additional power cuts for South Africa and China's 'Zero-Covid' policy will all weigh on the country's vehicle output in 2022.
• Over the longer term (2022-2031), we note that the slow development of a local electric vehicle (EV) industry will weigh on vehicle

Key View

• At Fitch Solutions, we forecast real GDP growth in South Sudan will rebound to 3.3%, from 0.2% in 2021, driven by easing Covid-19 restrictions, disinflation and rising oil output.

• While household consumption will be the key driver of economic growth, continued flooding, food insecurity and inter-communal violence will prevent a

Key View

• At Fitch Solutions, we expect South Africa’s current-account surplus to narrow to 3.3% of GDP in 2022, from a record 3.7% in 2021.
• While elevated metals prices in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine will boost export earnings, this will be offset by increasing imports due in part to higher oil prices.
• Meanwhile, the services

Key View: We believe that the usage case for EVs in South Africa continues to grow as fuel prices continue to rise while also experiencing power outages. We see consumers and businesses in the country will increasingly reduce their dependence on the government by generating their own electricity and adopting EVs to cut running costs. That said

Key View

• At Fitch Solutions, we forecast real household spending in South Africa to grow by 2.0% over 2022, a deceleration from growth of 4.6% in 2021, driven by favourable base effects wearing off. Over 2022, consumer spending will be supported by the easing of Covid-19 restrictions and the ongoing rollout of vaccines.
• Indeed, high frequency

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• A total of ZAR259.0bn (USD16.4bn) has been allocated for health in South Africa’s FY2022/23 budget, an increase of 1.1% from the previous year.
• Spending on HIV/ AIDS is set to decline, while funds for oncology and mental health have been shifted to the broader National Health Insurance grant.
• South Africa’s private health sector

Key View

• Firms operating in South Africa will continue to see increased regulation and oversight following amendments to the country’s Competition Act.
• Investigations into the operations of Roche by the South African Competition Commission highlight the authority’s greater power and oversight over corporate behaviour under South Africa’s new

Key View

• Increasing partnerships between South Africa’s Aspen Pharmacare and multinational drugmakers will continue to strengthen the company’s position in South Africa.
• Foreign pharmaceutical companies will continue to look to South African firms for partnerships as a launching platform to enter Sub-Saharan Africa.
• South Africa’s

Key View

• Hyperscale cloud vendor Oracle has opened a data centre in South Africa, its first on the African continent.
• South Africa has seen a growing level of investment from tech-players looking to capitalise on one of the region's outperforming and most digitally mature markets.
• Access to reliable power sources is a key downside risk to