The study looks at the cyclical behavior of the markups and assesses its impact on inflation dynamics. The analysis finds that the aggregate level of the private sector''s markup is relatively high, thus pointing to the lack of strong competition in South Africa''s product markets. Additionally,...

This paper examines the institutional and macroeconomic determinants of stock market development using a panel data of 42 emerging economies for the period 1990 to 2004. The paper finds that macroeconomic factors such as income level, gross domestic investment, banking sector development,...

The paper analyzes and quantifies the importance of sovereign risk in determining corporate default premia (yield spreads). It also investigates the extent to which the practice by rating agencies and banks of not rating companies higher than their sovereign (""country or sovereign ceiling"") is...

The transparency of monetary policy in South Africa has increased substantially since the end of the 1990s; but little empirical work has been done to examine the economic benefits of the increased transparency. This paper shows that, in recent years, South African private sector forecasters...

This paper analyzes export performance in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) using a gravity model applied to panel data. It addresses two questions: (i) are there significant unexploited export markets for the MENA region?; and (ii) have integration efforts with the EU since the mid-1990s...

This empirical study for South Africa indicates that there exists a stable money demand type of relationship among domestic prices, broad money, real income, and interest rates, as well as a long-run relationship among domestic prices, foreign prices, and the nominal exchange rate. In the short...

This paper describes the main elements of inflation targeting, reviews its pros and cons, and examines the experiences thus far in countries using this framework. It discusses the implications and relative merits of such a framework for South Africa, and concludes that it would be feasible and...

Over the past decade, South Africa has attracted relatively little foreign direct investment (FDI), but considerable amounts of portfolio inflows. In this context, the objective of the paper is twofold: to identify the determinants of the level and composition of capital flows to emerging...

This paper examines the role of the derivatives market in South Africa and provides policy options for promoting the development of derivatives markets in sub-Saharan Africa. South Africa''s derivatives market has grown rapidly in recent years, supporting capital inflows and helping market...