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Imraan Valodia

Dean of Commerce, Law and Management, University of the Witwatersrand
Professor Valodia has a doctorate in Economics from UKZN. His research interests include employment, the informal economy, gender, and industrialisation. He is currently coordinating an international study, in 10 cities, of the informal economy. His most recent book reports on the methodology and research findings of a three-year research project, conducted in eight countries, on the gender impacts of taxation. He has published in leading international journals and is one of only a handful of South African economists with an NRF B-rating. He serves on a number of economic policy forums and has worked with leading international development organisations, including the United Nations Research Institute for Social Development, the United Nations Development Programme, UN Women, the World Bank, and Women in Informal Employment: Globalising and Organising, among others. Professor Valodia is a part-time member of the Competition Tribunal and a Commissioner on the Employment Conditions Commission.

South Africa’s political monopoly has been broken: could it help the economy?

Jun 28, 2024 07:53 am UTC| Insights & Views Economy

Over the last decade or so there has been something of a revolution in economics. The long held belief that unfettered markets deliver good outcomes for all is now overwhelmingly discredited. Some of the most prominent...

South Africa’s wage gap is huge: why companies should report what CEOs and workers earn

Nov 06, 2023 15:35 pm UTC| Economy

Inequality in South Africa is high, whether measured by income or wealth. One of the results is that theres acute public scrutiny of executive compensation. This is understandable given that the skew in rewards for...

Inequality: troubling trends and why economic growth in Africa is key to reducing global disparities

Oct 16, 2023 06:31 am UTC| Economy Life

Inequality remains on the top of the policy priority list for most countries in the world. Branko Milanovic, a leading scholar on inequality, recently delivered a lecture titled Recent changes in the global income...

South Africa's COVID-19 strategy needs updating: here's why and how

May 14, 2020 10:08 am UTC| Economy

Decision-making at the early stages of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic (the coronavirus causing COVID-19) was constrained by a paucity of medical evidence and epidemiological data. Knowledge gained over the past two months can...

Economy

US-India Trade Bombshell: Tariffs Slashed to 18% — Rupee Soars, Sensex Explodes

Announced on February 2, 2026, the US-India commerce deal offers Indian exports significant tariff relief. From 25% to 18%, US reciprocal tariffs on Indian goods have been cut; the extra 25% punitive tariff connected with...

India Services Sector Rebounds in January as New Business Gains Momentum: HSBC PMI Shows Growth

Indias dominant services sector showed a strong rebound in January after slipping to an 11-month low in December, supported by a rise in new business activity, according to the latest HSBC India Services Purchasing...

Asian Currencies Trade Sideways as Dollar Stabilizes, Yen Weakens Ahead of Japan Election

Most Asian currencies traded within a narrow range on Wednesday as the U.S. dollar steadied following a strong rebound over the past week, while the Japanese yen underperformed amid growing political uncertainty ahead of a...

Australia’s Corporate Regulator Urges Pension Funds to Boost Technology Investment as Industry Grows

Australias corporate regulator has warned the countrys rapidly expanding pension fund industry that it must significantly increase investment in systems, technology, and governance to safeguard its future and avoid...

Trump Administration Sued Over Suspension of Critical Hudson River Tunnel Funding

New York and New Jersey have filed an emergency lawsuit against the Trump administration, seeking to restore federal funding for the $16 billion Hudson River tunnel project, a critical piece of U.S. transportation...

Politics

U.S. Justice Department Removes DHS Lawyer After Blunt Remarks in Minnesota Immigration Court

The U.S. Justice Department has removed a government lawyer from a high-pressure assignment in Minnesota following blunt comments made in federal court about her workload and the governments failure to comply with judicial...

Melania Trump Pushes Diplomacy to Return Ukrainian Children from Russia

U.S. First Lady Melania Trump said Wednesday that she remains in ongoing contact with Russian President Vladimir Putins team as part of efforts to secure the return of Ukrainian children taken to Russia since the start of...

Human Rights Watch Warns of Democratic Decline in U.S. Under Trump Administration

Human Rights Watch has raised serious concerns about the state of democracy in the United States, warning that key democratic institutions and human rights protections are under threat during President Donald Trumps second...

Ukraine-Russia Peace Talks in Abu Dhabi Show Cautious Progress Amid Ongoing Fighting

Ukrainian and Russian officials concluded what Kyiv described as a productive first day of new U.S.-brokered peace talks in Abu Dhabi, even as intense fighting continued across Ukraine in Europes largest conflict since...

Trump Intelligence Office Probes Puerto Rico Voting Machines Amid Election Security Concerns

A team working under U.S. Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard carried out a previously unreported investigation into Puerto Ricos electronic voting machines last spring, according to her office and multiple...

Science

NASA and SpaceX Target Crew-11 Undocking From ISS Amid Medical Concern

NASA has confirmed that the agency, in coordination with SpaceX, is targeting no earlier than 5 p.m. Eastern Time (2200 GMT) on Wednesday, January 14, for the undocking of the SpaceX Crew-11 mission from the International...

Neuralink Plans High-Volume Brain Implant Production and Fully Automated Surgery by 2026

Elon Musks brain-computer interface company Neuralink is preparing for a major expansion, announcing plans to begin high-volume production of its brain implant devices and transition to a fully automated surgical procedure...

Jared Isaacman Confirmed as NASA Administrator, Becomes 15th Leader of U.S. Space Agency

The U.S. Senate has officially confirmed billionaire private astronaut Jared Isaacman as the new NASA administrator, making him the 15th leader in the agencys history. The confirmation, which took place on Wednesday, marks...

Senate Sets December 8 Vote on Trump’s NASA Nominee Jared Isaacman

The U.S. Senate Commerce Committee announced it will vote on December 8 on President Donald Trumps renewed nomination of private astronaut and tech entrepreneur Jared Isaacman to lead NASA. Isaacman, known for his...

NASA Cuts Boeing Starliner Missions as SpaceX Pulls Ahead

NASA has significantly scaled back Boeings Starliner program after years of technical issues and delays, announcing that the next Starliner mission to the International Space Station (ISS) will fly without astronauts. The...

Technology

TSMC Eyes 3nm Chip Production in Japan with $17 Billion Kumamoto Investment

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC), the worlds largest contract chipmaker, is reportedly planning to mass produce advanced 3-nanometre (3nm) semiconductors in Kumamoto, southern Japan, marking a major shift...

Tencent Shares Slide After WeChat Restricts YuanBao AI Promotional Links

Shares of Tencent Holdings (HK:0700) fell sharply on Wednesday after its popular messaging platform WeChat blocked certain promotional links related to YuanBao, the companys artificial intelligence chatbot. The move...

Nvidia Nears $20 Billion OpenAI Investment as AI Funding Race Intensifies

Nvidia is reportedly nearing a major investment deal with OpenAI, signaling a significant development in the global artificial intelligence landscape. According to sources cited by Reuters, the chipmaking giant is in...

Anthropic Eyes $350 Billion Valuation as AI Funding and Share Sale Accelerate

Artificial intelligence startup Anthropic is reportedly preparing a major secondary share sale that would allow some employees to sell shares at a valuation of at least $350 billion, according to a recent Bloomberg report....

AMD Shares Slide Despite Earnings Beat as Cautious Revenue Outlook Weighs on Stock

Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) delivered a solid quarterly earnings beat, topping Wall Street expectations on both revenue and profit, yet its stock slipped in extended trading after the company projected a sequential...