Mboweni sees South African economy contracting 6.4%
JOHANNESBURG – South African Finance Minister Tito Mboweni said the South African economy could contract as much as 6.4% this year due to the coronavirus outbreak and the budget deficit could swell to more than 10% of gross domestic product.
In a recording of a conference call with clients of Goldman Sachs Group Inc., Mboweni said he expected the contraction to be deeper than the 5.8% forecast by the International Monetary Fund, and said the rebound to 4% economic growth the lender projects for 2021 is possible but will require significant structural changes to the economy.
“We are operating under very severe constraints,” he said on the call. The projected rebound “is possible but will require South Africa to be quite strong in structural reforms and the recapitalization of some of the firms which may come under stress during this period.”
Source: iol.co.za