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BER conferences, events and webinars

The BER hosts events in Cape Town and Johannesburg. BER conferences and breakfasts provide delegates with the latest forecasts as well as in-depth analyses of economic and political developments. The conferences are renowned for the quality of the speakers. At these events, delegates can listen to and engage with influential policy makers, business leaders, decision makers and other attendees.

Upcoming event:

2019 August | Searching for growth: A post-election policy and macroeconomic outlook

With the May election and cabinet appointments behind us, it is an opportune time to take stock of the short and medium-term outlook for the South African economy. Earlier in the year, there was some expectation that the period following the election would bring increased certainty with higher confidence levels. However, domestic confidence and GDP growth continue to be constrained by a number of factors. These include weak demand conditions, a rising fiscal and Eskom burden, ANC factional battles, as well as rising global tensions that have worsened the outlook for the world economy. Against this backdrop, the BER is hosting a morning briefing with a number of top analysts to make sense of it all.

Chair: Christelle Grobler, BER

Speakers include:
Hugo Pienaar, Chief Economist, BER
Montfort Mlachila, Senior Resident Representative in South Africa, IMF
Ralph Mathekga, Independent Political Analyst
Busani Ngcaweni, Head of Policy and Research Services, The Presidency

*There will be an opportunity for questions after each presentation.

To register, please click here. BER Macro Clients should register here for complimentary seats.

Date: Thursday 15 August 2019
Time: 08:15
Venue: The Maslow Hotel, Sandton

Latest event:

2019 March | SARB Public Lecture: Why should central banks be independent?

The Dean of the Faculty of Economic and Management Sciences, Prof Ingrid Woolard, and the Director of the Bureau for Economic Research, Prof Johann Kirsten, will host a public lecture on 6 March 2019 by the Governor of the South African Reserve Bank, Dr Lesetja Kganyago.

Date: Wednesday, 6 March 2019
Time: 17:30 for 18:00. The lecture will start at 18:00 and will be followed by a cocktail function.
Venue: Entrance 1, Van der Sterr Complex, Stellenbosch

Most recent events:

2018 May | BER MORNING BRIEFING: The macro economy, confidence and the land issue – Can the Cyril Spring endure?

Mr Hugo Pienaar, Senior economist, Bureau for Economic Research: Constrained optimism – prospects for the SA economy in a post-Zuma era.

2017 November | ERSA-BER – REDIX 3x3 Summit: A Strategy for Inclusive Growth and Economic Transformation in South Africa.

The BER joined forces with Economic Research Southern Africa (ERSA), and UCT’s Research Project on Employment, Income Distribution and Inclusive Growth (REDI 3x3) in hosting a summit to discuss policy options for “Inclusive growth”. The summit brought together 75 delegates including policy makers, corporate leaders and civil society partners with the intention to introduce new voices, new insights, and new policy options into the South African economic policy debate, while connecting to the existing understanding of the drivers of growth in South Africa. It was quite fortuitous to have Prof Joseph Stiglitz in South Africa at the time of the event and he agreed to present one of the keynote addresses at the meeting. Other addresses were made by Prof. Gary Fields (Cornell via AV from Ithaca) and Prof. Ben Friedman (Harvard University via AV from Boston) - International Growth Advisory Panel.

2017 October | Cutting through the fiscal noise: initial thoughts on the mini budget

Webinar presentment by Hugo Pienaar and Harri Kemp.

2017 May | BER MORNING BRIEFING: The SA economy, ANC succession and global disruption: The new normal of uncertainty

Global political events, such as the election of Donald Trump as US president and the UK’s planned exit from the EU have resulted in increased uncertainty. Furthermore, political uncertainty in the wake of the ANC policy conference in June as well as the elective conference in December were most likely to taper down any growth prospects. In this context, the BER hosted a morning briefing with three top analysts (Hugo Pienaar, Ralph Mathekga and Peter Attard Montalto) to provide some insights and likely political and economic scenarios to assist BER clients and South African business in general to make informed decisions.

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