Well, think again. Read this interesting letter, written by a practicing attorney in SA, and think again whether South Africa is somehow different from the rest of Africa.  [Read on]

During my visit to South Africa in December/January I was impressed by the progress made with preparations for the FIFA Football World Cup. Especially the stadium in Cape Town is very impressive. No doubt, the country will be ready on time. [Read on]

Many South Africans might be unaware of the fact that the tans and tan lines they view as “par for the course” every summer, are huge status symbols in Germany. Throughout the year, but especially in winter. [Read on]

Where are the days when journalists in South Africa jumped up and down frantically when the government of the day “intruded on the field of the private sector” by offering products or services “in competition with private sector players” and “with taxpayers’ money”? Apparently, long gone… [Read on]

The 50% tax on banker bonus payments proposed in London, is a step in the right direction. Now all the finance ministers in the world must follow this example, to effectively kill off the argument that skills go where the conditions are best. Conditions should be the same all over the world! There should be no place to hide! [Read on]

The global economic crisis brings strange stories in its wake. Such as this one about a cigarette price war in Germany, a country where the government tries to raise the “entrance barrier” for young smokers by making cigarettes more expensive. [Read on]

Johannes Dieterich, German journalist reporting for a number of German publications from South Africa, has made an embarrassing mistake in a report carried on the front page of Financial Times Deutschland (FTD) this morning. [Read on]

Johann Rupert has had an amazing “run” in the media since the announcement last week that he’ll come back as CEO of Richemont early next year. I’ve written (see article below) about the dailies FTD and Handelsblatt, which both called Rupert “Africa’s Warren Buffett”. [Read on]

Both big German business dailies reported about the return of “South Africa’s Warren Buffet” (Johann Rupert) to luxury goods company Richemont as CEO this morning. Both were a bit “wobbly” when it came to the facts. [Read on]

I want to go all “Schumpeterisch” and philosophical today and ask the question: what brings an economy, or a sector in an economy, to grow? [Read on]