Abstract
M.Comm. (Economics)
The purpose of this study is to examine the pattern of gross domestic saving in South Africa. This study looks at gross domestic saving in South Africa in general and the trends of its components in particular. It addresses the impacts of internal and external policies on the disaggregated domestic saving in South Africa. This is done with the aim of establishing the channels through which these policies influence the components of South Africa’s domestic saving.
This study focuses on current economic literature while examining gross domestic saving and its attributes. A brief discussion of gross domestic saving on emerging market region puts sub-Saharan Africa’s gross domestic saving, particularly that of South Africa, into perspective. Hence, the developments in South Africa’s domestic saving are compared with those of some selected countries. An analysis of gross domestic saving in South Africa for the period 1970 to 2004 indicates a long-run downward pattern.
The disaggregated domestic saving in South Africa shows that although three components contributed to the decline in South Africa’s domestic saving, the public sector appeared to be the main culprit in the decline. Thus, the net saving by the government had been negative since early 1980. The study observes that the patterns of saving of the three components are influenced by both internal and external factors.
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These internal and external factors are made up of fiscal and monetary policies, and the balance of payments.
Without over-emphasising the importance of gross domestic saving in any economy, it is crucial for South Africa to encourage a positive saving culture for improvement in meaningful domestic investment for long-term economic growth. This study, therefore, suggests that in a developing economy like the South African economy, a positive saving attitude could be encouraged through the use of internal and external policies. Hence, the positive impact of internal and external factors could motivate all stakeholders in gross domestic saving to seize any available opportunity to boost their savings, thereby raising South Africa’s gross domestic saving.