Some positive outlooks- Tourism, fast food and agriculture
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Some positive outlooks- Tourism, fast food and agriculture
According to National Treasury, the GDP growth rate is forecasted at an estimated 1.3 % for 2017. The outlook points to a tough year ahead for business; however, there are a few trends that promise a positive narrative for businesses during the year.
“ It isn’ t all doom and gloom: yes, the economy is slowing- however businesses that want to gain any wins in the market place in 2017 will have to operate in a more astute manner” says Dr Yudhvir Seetharam, head of analytics at FNB. Seetharam shared his outlook on a few trends in various industries that we can expect in 2017:
Growth in the pre-owned car market spurs on SME’ s in related markets The new car market will most likely continue to slow in 2017 as cash strapped consumers continue to opt to keep their cars. The saving grace for this sector will ultimately come from the pre-owned and spare parts market, and through it we are likely to see an increase in sales from businesses that sell tyres, spare parts and batteries as consumers look to stretch their Rand.
Fast-food uptake Fast – food franchises will likely experience growth. Tourism to continue growing South Africa has remained a popular luxury destination for many international travellers; especially as it offers a world class experience from shopping to pristine beaches and unforgettable safari’ s at a fraction of the price.
Increased use of the eCommerce platform With an increase in the number of people with accessibility to the internet and a population that is becoming more digitally savvy, we are bound to see more online solutions.
Agricultural sector to stabilize The past year for most farmers was a challenging year due to the drought conditions our country experienced. With a 75 % likelihood of a La Niña weather phenomenon, the much needed rain will bring relief to the sector. If the rain is consistent, we will see a normalisation in crop production. The meat market may still add to the food inflation but with good rains, we may see a general decrease in overall food inflation.
The latest Business Confidence and Consumer Confidence Indices indicate that South African consumers and businesses have similar expectations; consumer
confidence has increased marginally, but it still below historic averages. This implies that while consumers have a slightly more positive outlook on the economy, their spending patterns are likely to remain unchanged. In contrast, Business Confidence, in the motor and retailer sectors have dropped, indicating that these businesses expect dampened sales and profits over the short term.
“ 2017 will no doubt be a trying year for SME’ s across all industries, but with a recovering world market, and a Rand that is finding strength, we should start to see an upward trend towards the end of 2017 – hopefully the worst is behind us” concludes Seetharam.
AGRI SA’ s CEO honoured on continent and is elected WFO Audit Board President
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Omri van Zyl, Agri SA’ s executive director of Agri SA, was recently appointed as president of the World Farmers’ Organisation’ s Audit Board at a meeting of the organisation in Rome.
Agri SA is a member of the WHO and hosted the First General Assembly of the newly established World Farmers’ Organisation in South Africa during September 2011. WFO is an organisation of agricultural producers that aims to strengthen farmers’ positions within value chains, with a particular focus on smallholder farmers. By advocating on behalf of farmers and representing their interest in international policy forums, WFO supports farmers in better managing extreme price volatility, leveraging market opportunities, and timely access to market information
Van Zyl was late last year also named as this year’ s Continental Winner by CEO Global at a prestigious gala dinner.
SABI | FEBRUARY / MARCH 2017
Winner
CEO Global has focused on identifying and awarding Africa’ s leading talent over the past 16 years. Omri van Zyl was named as the continental winner under the category Agriculture in their‘ Leading African Recognition Programme.’
The aim of the programme is to honour excellence in the private and public sector. This programme covers 23 economic sectors recognizing leaders of excellence in their industry and is an open process with no affiliation to a professional body required. Nominations are obtained from the business community and individuals over a period of approximately 13 months. According to CEO Global’ s Chief Executive; just under 5000 nominations were received from various economic sectors from across the continent for the 2016 awards. It is indeed an achievement in its own right just to be recognized as a continental finalist.
Nominees undergo a multi-tiered judging process. The judging panel consists of four tiers and is comprised of 24 representatives from across Africa with leading figures from the business and public sector. Quality assurance is provided by KPMG throughout the judging and the highest possible standard is maintained.
Networking
Continental winners will also be afforded the opportunity to join the‘ Network of Influence’, which will
give them access to developmental tools and serves as a platform to bring together small and medium enterprises with corporates and the public sector.
“ Agri SA is extremely proud and elated with this prestigious award won by Omri. This is indeed a significant accomplishment in one’ s career and we congratulate him on this exceptional achievement”, says Johannes Möller, President of Agri SA.
“ I wish to thank CEO Global for this award, it is an honour to be named continental winner in this dynamic sector”, says Van Zyl.