Finance Minister Trevor Manuel (17 June)

Written by TVSA Team from the blog 3rd Degree on 17 Jun 2008
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On 3rd Degree this Tuesday:

Episode: Finance Minister Trevor Manua
Broadcast date: 17 June, 2008 at 20h00
Channel: e.tv

Food prices are skyrocketing, in recent weeks the oil price has hit new record highs, forcing transport costs up and on Thursday interest rates were hiked yet again, putting the squeeze on consumers who owe money on houses, cars and credit cards.

Tonight 3rd Degree hosts an exclusive live interview with Finance Minister Trevor Manual to find out what is driving up costs, what battered consumers can do to reduce the pain, and just how bad our financial future is looking.

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20 Comments

Bra Bizza
17 Jun 2008 00:29

what battered consumers can do to reduce the pain......i dont think there's anything we can do as we dont have a say in the oil price or the distribution of food.

Renegade
17 Jun 2008 01:14

Nah Bra Bizza, when the going is really tough, you'll do something about it. Cut some stuff out, and what not. Eish, I must start doing something myself.

tha - bang
17 Jun 2008 01:33

stop getting credits cards and lets save more.theres a start in the right direction

realist
17 Jun 2008 01:33

If demand outstrips supply, there is no way the food prize is going to go down. Some farmers do not want to farm because their farm maybe given back to the so called rightful owners. If you go to Mpumalanga, most of the farms are being mined for coal and as such there is less farms to produce food hence the import of food from overseas.

Next year is going to be even worse because of rising Diesel costs. When the farmes are going to sell their products at the markets, they are going to factor in the Diesel cost at this year's prizes and it is not going to be easy sailing. The best way to survive is to start saving enough to be able to survive next year.

Renegade
17 Jun 2008 01:45

The problem with the theory of saving, is that you have to actually have the money to save. The poor simply can't save. I was listening to some financial analyst saying that the poor spend 80% of their pay on food, while the rich spend only 10% of their pay on food.
I'm all for saving, but the only people who can save are the rich, and the averagely comfortable, and thus the rich getting richer will remain a reality.

tha - bang
17 Jun 2008 02:06

i hear u renegade but even the average working south african who earns more than R5000 who is not necesarily poor,does not save. we rather consume consume and consume.if it means going into more debt so that we can look good, drive nice cars,smell extra sweet and live in mansions just to keep up with our friends.we will do that.
i believe thats part of the problem.the poor folks yes its hard for them,but for most of us,its just bad money spending habits that could be curbed if we tried.

felfel
17 Jun 2008 02:38

Thabang, spending could be "curbed" if the financial times were normal. Unfortunately they not and its too late now cos people already have debt. As any good financial analyst/adviser would tell you, you can't save while you got debt, you need to pay all your debt first then start saving, otherwise you'll never be free and that money you are saving will never feel like yours cos you owe the equivalant sum of it to someone else.

Besides how do you save when everything is going up, you used to stash R1000 for petrol for the month, now maybe there's an extra R600 you need to add. That same R600 you would be saving is needed to fix that problem

Renegade
17 Jun 2008 02:50

@tha-bang, like i said, i'm all for saving, i try do it myself every month. All i'm saying though, is that the poor simply can't save, and it is to them whom saving would be most beneficial.
And I agree though, some people who can afford to save, dont. Simply because they want to live the high life. But the high life is a debt ridden life, and some people are about to get rude awakenings, if they have woken up yet.

@felfel:
Besides how do you save when everything is going up, you used to stash R1000 for petrol for the month, now maybe there's an extra R600 you need to add. That same R600 you would be saving is needed to fix that problem
Too true, the price of petrol is unreal. A full tank just doesn't take one quite as far anymore.

tha - bang
17 Jun 2008 03:11

i suggest we all start eating our belts, boiling our shoes and wearing our cousins hand me down. heres to the good life

Simmone
17 Jun 2008 03:16

Can’t wait to hear what politically correct dribble we will be fed or will he blame the situation on the consumers *read cash strapped tax payers*

Renegade
17 Jun 2008 04:07

Lol @ Tha - Bang
You know, in the same way that we always go back to olden day fashion clothing wise, we are gonna go back in other ways. particullary electricity, as some of us are going the gas route, and reading in candle light. And as for petrol, everyone is gonna go back to public transport, which will always be cheaper because of its inconvenience. And I suppose just the whole idea of living on the bread line...eish.

Brown Shuga
17 Jun 2008 17:01

<<<even the average working south african who earns more than R5000 who is not necesarily poor,does not save>>> more than R5000 is definitely poor if you have a family to look after so maybe your sentence should read more than R10 000. Coz that's not necessarily poor....

lepogo
18 Jun 2008 09:05

For every decade there has been such times-any one remember the 1998 meltdown when the interest rates almost went up to 30%?It gets better with time-stop trying to make sense of it and do the necessary-save and down size...

THe rest of the hogwash-the politically correct and the analytical-will sort themselves out.

My 2cents worth

realist
19 Jun 2008 01:09

do the necessary-save and down size...
Well said. That is the only way to survive.

The credit lending institutions made their money by giving out credit left, right and center; the automobile did the same, had a bull run at the JSE and now is the time for the farmers to make some money.

poshspice
19 Jun 2008 01:48

The reality is people are already living beyond their means with the help of credit lending institutions. Credit cards and store accounts. Nowadays, it's more about keeping our heads above water.

-The period of reckless lending really crippled lots of people who own 2-3 credit cards, owe loans and have store accounts.

-In addition, How do you stay away from a credit card when you don't have petrol to go to work and a bag of potatoes cost something like R40

-another challenge is DOWNGRADING....leaving your posh apartment in sunninghill and go to Lenasia, changing that Beema and buy a small car...we are used to a comfortable lifestyle, hence people wait for banks to repossess their houses and cars than changing their lifestyles to keep up with the joneses.

Cande
19 Jun 2008 01:57

iyhoo people talk about cooking oil...a normal cheap cooking oil costs R16.00..
I went to a store the other day, and came back without it coz i couldn't believe it..!
I just had to buy it the following day coz i needed it...
People speak about saving...its not everyone who can afford saving...
Sometimes people have parents/siblings to take care of back home, so i don't see how can i save if i need to send money home for my people to survive..

Vesa
19 Jun 2008 03:02

another challenge is DOWNGRADING....leaving your posh apartment in sunninghill and go to Lenasia, changing that Beema and buy a small car...we are used to a comfortable lifestyle, hence people wait for banks to repossess their houses and cars than changing their lifestyles to keep up with the joneses...

Yes, this is hard but can be done. And this is the best thing you can do for yourself.I've been there, went from a polo playa to a pedestrian just like that.....I had a vision and wanted to go back and study. I gave up(rented-out) my townhouse & moved in back with my folks. People talked and I never cared for I knew what I was doing.

There's no worse thing than have a bank repossess your house/ car. Rather go and re-negotiate your repayment terms. Otherwise yo property will be sold very cheap and you will still have the difference btween yo principal debt and the amount recovered to pay for otherwise a blacklisting of huge amounts

realist
19 Jun 2008 05:06

People speak about saving...its not everyone who can afford saving...

Trust me you can. Try unit trust. At present they are cheap and the minimum required range from R150 to R300. Treat this saving as your retirement. In 5 to 7 years time you will be smiling.

The period of reckless lending really crippled lots of people who own 2-3 credit cards, owe loans and have store accounts.

At present I have 3 credit cards and I owe all of them. I still manage to save by buying unit trust. I do not save anything with the banks because the interest that I get is low, every spare cash that I have I buy unit trust. This month I am receiving my incentive bonus and I am going to clear two credit cards and the remainder of the money buy unit trust. The other credit card the amount that I owe is fixed term.

The two credit cards that I am going to pay, I have already cut them. II have already informed the banks to cancel them and asked them never ever try to sell me any products that will cost me money.

Like you say, The period of reckless lending really crippled lots of people who own 2-3 credit cards, owe loans and have store accounts: Before I get crippled, I try to get rid of them as soon as I can. Hopefully in August I will be free from credit cards. When the cycle of interest start to go down, I will re-apply and start the process all over again.

Cande
19 Jun 2008 05:16

Iyhoo and i hear in America an average person own 3 credit cards...Le nto yama credit cards iserious mos..

Tashi
19 Jun 2008 05:24

! Just realised last night for some bizarre, unexplainable reason. It's all a conspiracy that's suiting lots of people! I've been spending some time switching between Sky and eNews and the only news was from politicians around the world is about what a terrible time everyone's going to have and the crunch and bad news generally and it struck me - dont you think it's the ideal opportunity for them to own us?? It's like the more difficult they tell it us is the more we're forced to be under their control.

At no point is anyone trying to make us feel as if there's light at the end of the tunnel or offering up solutions - it's all just : "it's all rising, rising, rising." - which creates fear - which keeps us firmly under their ownership.

I know it's ealistically happening but I'm also thinking that the messages being sent by politicians around the world are making it more difficult to handle - and also giving everyone a perfect excuse to push up prices. Guarenteed certain prices are going up with the excuse of fuel being more to get things to the shops when they don't have to be more.

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