Editor's Thoughts.

It’s been a year, right? We all woke up on 1 January expecting COFI to dominate our headlines and to-do lists, and a cautiously optimistic fiscal position to be nurtured. Yeah, not so much. Instead: geopolitics, tariffs, war and petrol prices, cost of living surges, the Madlanga Commission, El Nino, AI … Billy Joel could get another verse out of 2026.

Tomorrow’s medium-term budget (Macro's & markets) comes with a familiar balancing act: keep debt under control without squeezing an already stretched economy. Expectations differ on whether revenues will outperform or weaker growth will widen the gap. The real test is whether fiscal discipline translates into jobs, infrastructure and breathing room.

Images out of Paris right now showing violent rioting over living costs and deteriorating public services, offer a warning about how urgent fiscal growth is. And the impact of that on the household purse.

The news feed today shows how South African household budgets are facing their own stress test. Jacqui Nel (Aon) warns that cheaper medical cover can bring greater out-of-pocket exposure. Lebogang Mogashoa (Pension Funds Adjudicator) reports record pension complaints, with unpaid employer contributions still dominating investigated and closed cases. Money deducted isn’t necessarily money safely invested.

And Sebastien Alexanderson (National Debt Advisors) brings it home: when payday offers only temporary relief, debt pressure spills into relationships, parenting and mental wellbeing.

Tomorrow, Treasury presents its numbers. Around kitchen tables, South Africans are already doing theirs.

And around boardroom tables, how are you evolving your consulting advice and product design? Stay informed on trends in activating meaningful benefits for your retirement fund members and clients by registering for next week’s EBnet Evolutionaries Conference here.

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