Ladies and Gentlemen if there is a silver lining to the high level of food inflation, it is that it is beginning to force consumers to be more discerning and more price conscious in their purchases. I am also told that backyard gardening is making a comeback.
Some major developments subsequent to this time include the introduction of electronic trading, matching and settlement; the immobilisation and later, dematerialisation of bonds listed on BESA, the development of a series of total-return indices for government and corporate bonds and the development of a more refined yield curve. Since the late 1990s, the South African bond market has increased in depth and sophistication.