Happy Friday everyone, hope you’ve made it through the week in one piece.
Friday, 29 May 2026
Reserve Bank hikes rates again, and your bond just got more expensive
So the SARB went ahead and bumped interest rates by 25 basis points, and if you’ve got a home loan you’re already doing the maths in your head. It’s not a massive hike on paper, but when you’re already stretched thin with the cost of living the way it is, every extra hundred rand on your monthly bond payment stings. The timing is rough, especially heading into winter when electricity and grocery bills are already climbing.
Braai prices are still going up, and that hurts
Food inflation is apparently easing, but nobody told the butcher. The latest Braai Index shows prices are still rising, which is genuinely painful for South Africans because the braai isn’t just a meal, it’s a cultural institution. When you can’t afford to throw a decent braai on a Friday afternoon without doing a budget spreadsheet first, something has gone seriously wrong in this country.
ANC veterans sounding the alarm on corruption before elections
This one is worth paying attention to. Moeletsi Mbeki is warning that corruption will actually spike as the ANC loses its grip on power, because officials will rush to loot what they can before the music stops. Mathews Phosa is predicting the ANC could drop to 26% as voter trust continues to collapse. These aren’t opposition politicians saying this, these are people who were inside the tent for decades. When your own veterans are talking like this publicly, it tells you everything about where the party is right now.
Pretoria evictions stalled, and the Gezina camp situation is a mess
The human rights ruling that paused the Gezina camp evictions sounds like a win on the surface, but the FF Plus has a point when they say relocation just moves the problem without solving it. The camp is already reportedly in poor condition with stolen tents, and nobody seems to have a real plan. As someone in Pretoria, this is the kind of thing that affects our city directly and it deserves more serious attention than it’s getting.
So let’s talk about the interest rate hike, are you feeling it on your bond or rent, and do you think the Reserve Bank made the right call given everything happening in the economy right now?
Have a good one this Friday, and stay warm out there, winter is properly here.
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