The Citizen

Consumers are in for a tough time Most consumers cut out luxuries from their spending some time ago. They will also have to start cutting on basic necessities just to stay alive. Although the petrol price is only expected to rise by about 7 cents a litre in June, with diesel likely to increase by… Continued

Government and Eskom debt is huge, ratings downgrade likely – Debt Rescue. Government corruption and mismanagement are to blame for the dire situation consumers face due to the fuel and electricity increase implemented this week. Experts said the electricity hike on Monday and petrol hike yesterday would hit consumers and businesses hard. They predicted that… Continued

Another fuel price drop may only be a temporary reprieve. The country may start the new year positively with a fuel price decrease scheduled for tomorrow, but a tough year is awaiting South Africans, with a series of price hikes that may send the economy into a tailspin. Investors will not jump to invest after… Continued

The fact that the gov­ern­ment has by ar­ti­fi­cial means sup­ported the fuel price to keep it well be­low the 23c-25c a litre that had been ex­pected will come back to haunt con­sumers in months to come says econ­o­mist Dawie Roodt. “There is a set for­mula that the en­ergy depart­ment and econ­o­mists use to cal­cu­late the… Continued

Neil Roets A growing number of deeply indebted consumers are getting themselves into financial trouble by “investing” in cryptocurrencies such as bitcoin and Ripple. I was amazed when the first clients started applying for debt counseling who had been driven to the brink of bankruptcy by buying into get-rich-quick schemes involving cryptocurrencies. Some of them… Continued

South Africa is the only country in the world that allows for home loans to be placed under debt review. Individuals pledging their lives to one another may well be forgiven for wanting to alter their wedding vows such that “death” is replaced with “debt”. Financial difficulties can place enormous strain on any relationship, more… Continued

– Deeply indebted consumers should think long and hard before plunging themselv es even deeper into debt by splurging on luxury goodson Black Friday. Often deals offered by major retailers seem so good that consumers throw caution to the wind and blow their entire Christmas budget on expensiv e items such as high-end TVs and… Continued