Ghost Stories #5: The Importance of China (Siyabulela Nomoyi, Portfolio Manager at Satrix)

Comments (7)

1. Gc

   06 Feb 2023

   Great Podcast. Very informative and eye-opening.

   Reply
2. Pietdevs

   07 Feb 2023

   I expected a bit more info from the guest. This was just a summary of the current situation which is commons knowledge.

   Reply
   • The Finance Ghost

     07 Feb 2023

     Hi – not common knowledge to everyone! The goal here was to give a sweeping overview of why China is important. For most people, there was stuff in here that they wouldn’t have necessarily known. Common knowledge isn’t as common as you think! 🙂

     Reply
   • Siara

     10 Feb 2023

     It may be common knowledge to you, but it’s not to some of us 🙂

     Reply
3. Ivan

   08 Feb 2023

   I listened to SAFm this morning who criticised China for the Failure of Transet’s inability to service the trains the Transnet Procurement board purchased from China which were not suited to South Africa’s existing rail network infrastructure. China is allegedly wanting to charge Transnet a premium for components thereby circumventing procurement policies. Meanwhile, Transnet claims they cannot get the components from any other supplier. Um, so I guess that places China in a very strong position and puts pay to current procurement policies. However, it highlights the Cancer in Africa which it the lack of ingenuity, the lack in aptitude to turn a negative into a positive. Clearly there is a golden opportunity to produce the components in South Africa and to stimulate the industrial and engineering sectors?!
   The previous dispensation under severe sanctions and embargoes built its own industries to support the infrastructure expansion and maintenance the Nation needed. This is where SOE’s were so crucial to Government.
   South African should be cognisant of the fact that our economy has been hollowed out by Western Nations including European Countries (Germany, Sweden, Norway, UK et al.). It was Mr. Anderson the turn around specialist from the US who sold off much of SAA’s assets and absconded with a huge performance bonus. These economic assassins have been active in South Africa for a very long time. Our partnership in BRICS is not the cause of our economic woes as SAfm and Alec Hogg will have us believe.

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   • Nkateko

     09 Feb 2023

     This is so true and in many ways this is such a practical and realist solution for SA right now. The opportunity to the upside for our country is huge, if only we can get great leaders who can think.

     Reply
4. Nkateko

   09 Feb 2023

   One thing that does not give me any comfort about Chinas approach in Africa is their somehow selfish & ruthless in their business approach, they always use their own equipment, resources and it seems that most of the contracts they have across Africa, they are benefiting way more than the countries they claim to be helping. Somehow China is currently owning a large portion of African countries through its very sneaky deals which it always has an upperhand, more like an iron fist to the neck of those countries.
   E.g. https://www.africanliberty.org/2018/09/10/like-zambia-sri-lanka-also-handed-over-port-to-china-to-pay-off-debt/
   https://www.hellenicshippingnews.com/china-to-take-over-kenyas-main-port-over-unpaid-huge-chinese-loan/
   Unfortunately the governments have already somehow been captured (or not smart enough) to see into the future of those deals they are getting into. However I am also very envious of how that selfishness is something has benefited and transformed their economy to become the second largest economy in the world. How I wish that our own country could learn from that and stop trying to please everyone at our country’s expense.

   Reply