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Seán Mfundza Muller

Senior Lecturer in Economics, University of Johannesburg

Academic economist at the University of Johannesburg (UJ), where I lecture on microeconomics and industrial policy. Research interests and areas are wide-ranging, but with a particular focus on methodological issues in microeconometrics and the use of economic analysis for policy. I currently lecture on microeconomics and industrial policy. Affiliated to the Public and Environmental Economics Research Centre (PEERC) at UJ.

Previously worked at the University of Cape Town lecturing public sector economics, quantitative methods and history of economic thought. Recently left the Parliamentary Budget Office of South Africa, where I was producing analysis and advice for parliamentary committees on public finance and economics matters.

South Africa's medium-term budget reflects difficult and contested decisions

Nov 02, 2023 13:31 pm UTC| Politics

The medium-term budget policy statement presented by South Africas finance minister, Enoch Godongwana, to parliament on 1 November 2023 is intended to provide a preview of governments public finance plans over the next...

Emerging Market Crisis Series

Budget shows treasury is desperately short of ideas to fix South Africa's economic woes

Mar 01, 2020 13:09 pm UTC| Insights & Views Economy

At the core of this years budget proposals from South Africas national treasury is the admission that national debt is no longer expected to stabilise. In previous years, bar one brief exception, budgets and medium-term...

South Africa's energy crisis has triggered lots of ideas: why most are wrong

Jan 24, 2020 05:54 am UTC| Insights & Views Business

Since late last year South Africans have, once again, been subjected to power cuts by the power utility, Eskom. The need for whats called loadshedding planned power outages led to the recent resignation of Eskoms...

Randomised trials in economics: what the critics have to say

Dec 13, 2019 07:23 am UTC| Insights & Views Economy

The 2019 Nobel Prize has been awarded to three scholars for pioneering recent attempts to answer microeconomic issues in development using randomised experiments. Over the last three decades randomised trials have...

How randomised trials became big in development economics

Dec 10, 2019 05:16 am UTC| Insights & Views Economy

The 2019 Nobel Prize in economics was awarded to three researchers for their experimental approach to alleviating global poverty, one which has transformed development economics. What are randomised experiments? And why...

South Africa needs a functioning parliamentary budget office: now's the time to fix it

May 25, 2019 06:47 am UTC| Insights & Views Politics

South Africas Parliamentary Budget Office (PBO) is in complete disarray. In the 10 years since it was established by law, and the five years it has been in operation, the Office has failed to adhere to key principles of...

South Africa's new finance minister postpones tough decisions

Oct 29, 2018 19:56 pm UTC| Insights & Views Politics

South African finance minister Tito Mbowenis 2018 medium-term budget policy statement brought no surprises. Standing before the National Assembly on Wednesday 24 October, Mboweni presented the Natural Treasurys fiscal...

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Economy

IMF Maintains 2027 Global Growth Forecast at 3.4% Amid Rising Risks

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) maintained its 2027 global economic growth forecast at 3.4%, warning that escalating Middle East tensions, rising government debt and persistent inflation could threaten the global...

Philippines Current Account Deficit Seen at $19.1 Billion in 2026

The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) expects the Philippines current account deficit to reach $19.1 billion in 2026, equivalent to 3.8% of the countrys gross domestic product (GDP), according to projections announced by...

RBA Signals More Rate Hikes as Inflation Risks Rise

The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) has indicated that further interest rate hikes remain possible as policymakers confront persistent inflation pressures and rising global costs, according to minutes from its September...

Gold Prices Rebound as Dollar Weakens Ahead of US Inflation Data

Gold prices rose on Tuesday as a softer U.S. dollar supported precious metals, although escalating Middle East tensions and expectations of further Federal Reserve interest-rate hikes continued to limit gains. Spot gold...

Asian Currencies Steady as Dollar Nears 18-Month High Ahead of US CPI

Asian currencies traded in narrow ranges on Tuesday as investors remained cautious ahead of crucial U.S. inflation data, while the U.S. dollar stayed near an 18-month high amid geopolitical tensions and sustained demand...

Politics

US Condemns China Sanctions on Taiwan Allies Belize and Paraguay

The Trump administration has criticized China for imposing sanctions on government ministers from Belize and Paraguay over their diplomatic relations with Taiwan, accusing Beijing of using coercion to undermine the...

Kim Jong Un Showcases ICBM Ahead of Possible Trump Meeting

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un visited a newly opened military museum showcasing advanced weapons, including an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) capable of striking the United States, according to state media...

Trump Denies Russia and China Are Helping Iran in U.S. Conflict

U.S. President Donald Trump said Monday evening that he does not believe Russia or China is providing significant assistance to Iran in its ongoing conflict with the United States, despite reports suggesting both countries...

Most Americans Oppose Election Betting on Prediction Markets, Poll Finds

A majority of Americans oppose betting on US elections, military operations and government decisions through prediction markets, according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll, highlighting public concerns as regulators consider new...

Elon Musk Donates $366 Million to 2026 US Midterms

Elon Musk has poured approximately $366 million into the 2026 US midterm elections, making the Tesla and SpaceX CEO potentially the largest individual political donor of the election cycle as Republicans fight to retain...

Science

Blue Origin New Glenn Explosion Could Delay Launch Operations Until 2028

Blue Origin is facing a significant setback after a dramatic explosion involving its New Glenn rocket severely damaged a launch pad at Cape Canaveral, Florida. According to NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman, repairs to the...

Blue Origin New Glenn Rocket Explodes During Launch Pad Test, Delaying Space Ambitions

Blue Origin suffered a major setback after its uncrewed New Glenn rocket exploded during a launch pad test in Florida on Thursday, raising new challenges for Jeff Bezos space company as it competes with Elon Musks SpaceX...

SpaceX Delays Starship V3 Launch Ahead of Potential Record IPO

SpaceX on Thursday postponed the highly anticipated launch of its 12th Starship rocket test from Texas after technical issues interrupted the final countdown. The company now plans to attempt the Starship V3 launch again...

Trump Administration Releases New UFO Files and Apollo Mission Records

The U.S. Defense Department has released dozens of previously classified UFO-related files following an order from President Donald Trump, sparking renewed debate over unidentified anomalous phenomena (UAP) and government...

China vs. NASA: The New Moon Race and What's at Stake by 2030

The space race is back and this time, its a direct competition between the United States and China for dominance on the lunar surface. NASAs Artemis II mission recently made history when four astronauts flew farther into...

Technology

Nvidia’s China AI Chip Market Share Falls to 34% as Huawei Gains Ground

Nvidias share of Chinas artificial intelligence chip market declined sharply during the first half of 2026 as U.S. export restrictions and growing competition from domestic semiconductor manufacturers reshaped the...

Samsung, SK Hynix Shares Plunge as China Chip Competition Grows

Shares of South Korean semiconductor giants Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix plunged on Tuesday, extending a steep selloff as investors weighed rising competition from Chinese memory chipmakers and growing uncertainty...

Moonshot AI Executives Seek Settlement Ahead of Hong Kong IPO

Senior executives at Chinese artificial intelligence startup Moonshot AI are reportedly negotiating a settlement in a shareholder dispute ahead of the companys planned Hong Kong initial public offering (IPO). According to...

Meta Launches Muse Wonder AI Models, Shares Rise 3.7%

Meta Platforms has unveiled its latest artificial intelligence models, Muse Wonder and Muse Wonder Full, marking a major step in the companys efforts to compete with leading AI developers. The announcement on Monday...

Epic Games Delays Disney Shooter, Shifts to AI-First Development

Epic Games has reportedly postponed the launch of its upcoming Disney multiplayer shooter as the Fortnite developer adopts an artificial intelligence-driven approach to game production, according to Bloomberg. The highly...