The North West University (NWU) Business School’s Policy Uncertainty Index (PUI) increased to 60.9 during the second quarter, from 59.7 in the first quarter, and remains well in negative territory.
This is the highest level recorded since the inception of the PUI in 2016.
The further elevation in the second-quarter PUI, following on the sharp rise in the first quarter, was driven by the continued and heightened global economic unpredictability arising from the Russia/Ukraine war, which also reinforced some persistent domestic policy uncertainties.
However, State-owned power utility Eskom’s blackouts remain the biggest single strategic threat to South Africa’s economic performance, the NWU PUI report shows.
After the highly negative gross domestic product (GDP) contraction of 6.4% in 2020, the domestic economy bounced back in 2021 with an economic recovery of 4.9% in GDP last year. The better-than-expected GDP figures for the…
