Reserve Bank governor Tito Mboweni’s decision to leave interest rates unchanged is good news for farmers. Last week Mboweni announced that interest rates will remain at 9% and the prime interest rate, which banks charge to customers, will remain at 12,5%. Dr Tobias Doyer, CEO of the Agricultural Business Chamber, cautioned farmers that although the interest rates are unchanged, there are some indications that interest rates may rise again because of excessive consumer spending. “Farmers must not go on a spending spree,” Doyer said.
John Gordon, chairperson of the Cereal and Association, said Mboweni’s decision is good news for farming debt. “Farmers won’t have to fork out more for what they owe,” he said. Dr Ferdi Meyer, head of the Bureau for Food and Agricultural Policy at the University of Pretoria, said prices of grain, livestock and oilseed commodities are high and this means farmers will be able to cover variable costs such as fertiliser, feed and fuel. – Wilma den Hartigh
