In today’s episode with my guest Adrian Saville, we focussed on the country’s economic attractiveness, driven by compelling yields on government bonds, stabilising inflation and a strategically undervalued rand. We also discussed the critical reforms and infrastructural improvements necessary to stimulate growth and create jobs.

Saville (pictured below) also highlighted the specific investment opportunities in the mid-cap equity market, including the tourism and mining sectors, offering a comprehensive view of South Africa’s investment horizon.

Saville is a seasoned executive with more than 25 years’ experience in capital markets and investment management. He was the founder and chief executive of Cannon Asset Managers, but sold the business to a listed company in 2021. He then joined a multi-family investment office, Genera Capital, where he was responsible for growing the firm’s market presence.

Last year he decided to take a step away from that and focus on his professorship in economics, finance and strategy at the Gordon Institute of Business Science (GIBS).

Tune into our conversation for a deeper dive into the political and economic prospects and challenges that lie ahead.

Morningstar South Africa’s Sean Neethling discusses the sentiment shift toward SA assets and what investors should pay attention to amid the government's coalition transition.

‘Welcome to 'Money, Markets, and Masterminds,' - a Citywire South Africa podcast that delves into the intricate world of finance, investment and strategic decision-making.

Today is our second episode of a new underlying series, in partnership with Morningstar South Africa and its head of investments Sean Neethling.

The series, aptly called: ‘Mind over Markets with Morningstar’ provides the latest insights on monthly investment trends.

For the foreseeable future, the first Monday of every month, we will be exploring key market developments and dissecting economic indicators, which will cover everything from equities and fixed income to commodities and alternative investments.

South African assets reacted positively to news of a coalition government, after the ANC lost its 50% majority in the results of the national election in May. Markets were especially positive about the announcement of a government of national unity (GNU) and specifically the potential partnership between the ANC and DA.

There has been a clear sentiment shift with SA assets all rallying significantly over the last two weeks to 21 June.

Recent market movements suggest there is a SA-specific story underlying performance. The question is what are the main drivers, how sustainable is that performance and what should investors pay attention to as SA transitions into a coalition-led government?

Neethling discusses this and more in this episode.

Welcome to 'Money, Markets, and Masterminds' – a Citywire South Africa podcast – that delves into the intricate world of finance, investment and strategic decision-making.

My guest today is Gareth Stobie, the founder of CoreShares, which has blossomed into a flourishing passive investment management business and ETF issuer. At the point of its acquisition by 10X Investments – not too long ago – it had approximately R13,8bn under management.

Stobie is now director of strategy and corporate development at ETFSA and is working with other industry stalwarts such as Mike Brown and Nerina Visser.

Exchange-traded funds (ETFs) have been around since the early 1990s, but in recent years their popularity has soared. Today, there are more ETFs listed on the JSE 222 to be exact) than single shares. In this podcast we'll explore what's driving this surge, the latest trends shaping the ETF landscape and what investors should keep an eye on moving forward.

In this podcast interview with Numsa deputy general secretary Mbuso Ngubane (pictured below) at Citywire South Africa’s annual retreat in Fancourt, the union boss emphasised the importance of the working class being more active in the economy and owning the means of production.

Numsa is the biggest trade union in South Africa with around 340,000 members. Mbuso is a key member of the executive committee and his responsibilities include directing the day-to-day operations and managing relationships with strategic stakeholders of Numsa members across a myriad of sectors including retirement funds in the manufacturing, mining and automotive sectors.

He also wants workers to have power over their own retirement savings, thus allowing them to meet their obligations and purchase property to create generational wealth.

He said there is an urgent need for more purposeful behaviour in government in addressing these shortcomings and he questioned the election results, stating that they did not reflect the working class’s ambitions.

Listen to this explosive Citywire interview below, which reveals how fragile the relationship between organised labour and government is.

Today is our first episode of a new underlying series in partnership with Morningstar South Africa and their Head of Investments - Sean Neethling, who was on the show not too long ago.

This new series is aptly called: ‘Mind over Markets with Morningstar’ and will provide the latest insights on monthly investment trends.

So, for the foreseeable future, the first Monday of every month, we will be exploring key market developments and dissecting economic indicators, which will cover everything from equities and fixed income to commodities and alternative investments.

US Equities have continued to dominate global markets since the world emerged from the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 and have been supported by exceptional performance by American tech companies, the so-called Magnificent Seven, leading valuations to all-time highs.

According to Morningstar data The S&P 500 returned 29.8% over the 12 months to end March 2024 and the Nasdaq delivered 39.2% over the same period. In short, if you had exposure to US equities, especially, listed tech stocks, you would have been in a very fortunate position today.

It seems that Nvidia continues to be the standout with the company maintaining its competitive edge in generative AI but we are starting to see some divergence in the performance of US tech companies.

Given the mixed earnings reports and the unclear path of interest rates in the US, what performance indicators should investors focus on to navigate this potential fork in the road for American tech companies?

Listen to this podcast to find out.

The two-pot retirement fund system is the most significant reform that the local pension fund industry has seen in recent years.

Besides getting a handle on the legal changes — including the Revenue Laws Amendment Bill and the Pension Laws Amendment Bill —each private and public fund will also have to amend its rules to accommodate the new regime.

The Financial Sector Conduct Authority - or FSCA for short - already allowed the funds that fall under its jurisdiction to start submitting their rule amendments from the beginning of the month. Rule amendments must be approved, or funds won’t be able to seed the savings pot or pay out withdrawals.

But if the red tape is not enough to keep administrators up at night as the 1 September deadline looms, industry experts have warned that the expected volume of withdrawal applications could add fuel to this fire.

Tackling misinformation about the new system will also be tricky. It is for this reason that I invited John Anderson, Executive: Solutions and Enablement at Alexforbes into the studio today to help navigate Citywire listeners through some of the details of this expected frenzy.

Some of the misconceptions cleared up in this episode include the fact that the new system is indeed starting on September 1, despite some beliefs to the contrary. The initial setup of the savings pot is not a one-time opportunity; it will be accessible annually under certain conditions. And Not everyone will receive the maximum R30,000; it’s based on 10% of their accumulated savings, subject to a cap.

Tune in to understand some of the finer details around the new regime and find out more about the importance of thorough preparation and clear communication as the industry transitions to this new system, which ultimately aims to improve retirement outcomes for its members.

In this episode, we delve into the essential topic of default regulations and their impact on investors and retirees. We'll explore the significance of these regulations for investment portfolios, the crucial roles of trustees and financial advisers and the strategic setup of the Investment Policy Statement. Discover how these regulations, implemented in March 2019, guide the provision of default investment portfolios and influence retirement savings strategies, including post-retirement products like annuities. Joining us today is Johann Peens, an independent registered financial adviser with the Financial Planning Institute of South Africa. Johann shared his expertise on advising clients about these regulations and ensuring they receive good value for their retirement savings. Tune in to learn how standardised practices can help members retire comfortably and how the two-pot retirement system has made independent advice more important than ever before.

The South Africa of 1995 was a very different place. The country was basking in the glow of its first democratic elections the year before. We won the Rugby World Cup for the first time and DStv had just launched.

The Johannesburg Stock Exchange also looked vastly different.

At the time, 600 companies were listed on the exchange. Only six of the companies listd in the Top 40 index then – Anglo American, Richemont, Standard Bank, Sasol, Nedcor (now Nedbank), Absa and GoldFields – remain among the 40 largest shares on the bourse today.

And with BHP’s recent bid for Anglo, we don’t know how long, or even if, it will stick around.

The increased number of companies de-listing from the JSE has elevated investor concerns about the outlook for local equities. The shortage of new listings, the relatively weak performance of local shares and depressed levels of business confidence have further fanned fears among market participants.

While the delisting trend is concerning, our discussion today is less about the number of companies vanishing from the equity market and more about the level of market concentration and its impact on investment portfolios.

Citywire South Africa invited Sean Neethling, head of investments at Morningstar Investment Management South Africa into the studio to talk about what this means for money managers.

Neethling joined the business in July 2021 and is responsible for Morningstar South Africa’s domestic and global portfolios. He also oversees the firm’s entire investment capability and strategy.

This is what he had to say.