Five Practical Ways To Save

Five practical ways to save Putting money into a savings account is not just for your own well-being – it can also have a massive impact on the economy as a whole.

- Schalk Louw

I ‘m sure that many of us have looked forward to a salary increase or annual bonus so much that we just went ahead and shamelessly spent our money on all the desirables we’ve been looking forward to all year even before payday. Sobering is that moment when payday arrives without your expected salary increase or bonus during a time when the prices of necessities such as electricity and fuel are skyrocketing. Suddenly you find yourself staring at a negative bank or credit card balance, and the month has barely begun.

But don’t blame only yourself for your subjective judgment on spending habits – the entire South African economy has been heading down the same path for quite some time.

Local GDP declined by 0.7% for the first quarter of 2017, after declining by 0.3% in the last quarter of 2016, which means that we now officially find ourselves in a recession. After our downgrade to junk status earlier this year, the Reserve Bank, which normally would have lowered interest rates after such figures have been released, would have to think twice before taking action. So ultimately, things don’t look so good for the rest of South Africa.