'Make America Wealthy again': Latest news on US tariffs

Bovest • April 4, 2025

The widely anticipated tariffs were announced last night via executive order, on America’s so-called ‘Liberation Day’ and in discussions with our partners at Morningstar, the following should be noted.

The sweeping announcement is intended to ‘make America wealthy again’ as tariffs effectively tax foreign producers on their imported goods, as a percentage of their value. The US is currently the largest goods importer in the world and is currently running a trade deficit (imports more than it exports). President Trump has said that he will not negotiate, however, if countries are willing to lower their charges on US goods, the White House will reduce the rate in effect.

 

Market impact

 

US Equities have sold off sharply, particularly those reliant on imported goods, as well as foreign companies that have significant exposure to the US market. At the time of writing, the FTSE 100 was down 1.4% to below 8,500, whilst sterling had appreciated to 1.32 against the dollar. Bond prices have broadly risen as investors have sought perceived safer assets.

 

SA equities and bonds responded negatively after markets opened. The All-Share was down around -3,5% by end of-day with the decline being led by Financials at -4.3%, while both Resources and Industrials were down approximately -2.4%. The yield on the SA 10-year government bond spiked sharply to 11.3%, a move of 0.8% off the previous day's close. The rand remains relatively range-bound between R18.60 – R18.80 despite general US dollar weakness against most major currencies.

 

What we know about the Tariffs:

 

The tariffs that were imposed last night are of a reciprocal nature, meaning that countries are free to retaliate with their own tariffs on the US.

 

Below are some of the standout tariffs that Trump has imposed across the globe:

· China 34%

· India 26%

· Japan 24%

· EU 20%

· UK 10%

 

South Africa, which currently applies 60% tariffs on the US, was handed a 30% reciprocal tariff. The effective rate is likely to be lower given that key commodity exports, including gold and platinum, are currently exempted.

 

What we don’t know

 

President Trump has not made it clear whether the tariffs will remain in place indefinitely and whether indeed they will remain at the initial level. There are many factors that could impact their longevity, including legal ramifications and future election implications. It is also yet to be seen how and when other countries will react to these changes.

 

Countries may look to increase their current tariffs on the US or indeed may consider reducing them. Additionally, President Trump has stated that the only way to gain exemption from the tariffs is to set up factories and build products in the U.S., so we await to see how countries and companies react to this proposition.

 

What’s next?

 

While volatility and policy uncertainty will likely persist in the short term, we recommend investors keep a cool head. The challenge is to avoid overreacting to the elevated day-to-day volatility and remain focused on your financial plan.

 

Central Banks have been in a holding pattern in anticipation of actions taken by President Trump, and therefore this announcement may have an impact on future Central Bank policy and interest rates. From a longer-term perspective, we may see implications for economic growth across various regions, however, it is too early to tell at this stage.

 

From an investment standpoint, we continue to focus on the fundamentals, maintaining a long-term mindset, whilst paying attention to valuations. Market volatility can provide investors an opportunity to rethink their portfolios and find some better-valued investments with more attractive returns, however, it’s important to note that while selloffs will produce bargains, investors shouldn’t buy simply because stocks look less overvalued.

 

Investment is always full of uncertainty, and therefore the Bovest solutions are constructed with this in mind. Valuations are key in our decision-making process, whereby our research process identifies return drivers from oversold assets, offering investors a high margin of safety. Against that, we also hold defensive assets that can add ballast to portfolios during periods of turbulence, including high quality government bonds and defensive equities such as consumer staples.

 

Diversification continues to be a strong portfolio strategy in these times of uncertainty.

 

Regards,

 

The Bovest Team

Offshore Investing: What Your R2 Million Allowance Actually Buys You

By Ruvan J Grobler • July 24, 2026
Is investing offshore just for people who've given up on South Africa? I get some version of this question a lot, and the honest answer is no. It's really just about not keeping all your eggs in one rand-denominated basket. And it got a lot more relevant this year, because in April 2026 the Reserve Bank doubled the Single Discretionary Allowance from R1 million to R2 million per person, per year. That's a meaningful jump, and it's worth understanding properly before you use it. Here's how the allowance system actually works. Every South African resident over 18 gets a Single Discretionary Allowance of R2 million a year. No SARS approval, no tax clearance, you just instruct your bank and off it goes, for travel, gifts, or offshore investing. On top of that sits the Foreign Investment Allowance, up to another R10 million a year, but that one needs a SARS Approval for International Transfer first, which comes off your tax compliance status on eFiling. Between the two, that's R12 million per person, per year, without needing special Reserve Bank sign-off. A couple, or a family with adult kids, can add that up quickly. Worth knowing too, this is different from the rand-denominated offshore funds most people already hold through their local platforms. Those use asset swap or feeder structures, and your allowance never actually leaves the country. Direct offshore investing means the money physically converts to dollars, pounds or euros and sits in an account in your own name, offshore. Different animal, different mechanics. Side note: if you've got a retirement annuity, you already have some offshore exposure, Regulation 28 lets retirement funds hold up to 45% offshore. That's real diversification, but it's locked inside a retirement structure with its own rules on access and estate treatment. Using your personal allowance is a completely separate lever, money you actually hold in your own name, offshore, that you can access, restructure or leave to whoever you want without waiting for retirement age. Who actually uses this in practice? Families with kids studying or working abroad. People planning to retire partly offshore, or just wanting a foreign currency buffer for when they travel. Business owners who've built most of their wealth locally and want a real counterweight sitting outside the country. It's rarely about chasing better returns, it's about not having every asset you own exposed to the same risks at the same time. So why bother with the direct route? Two reasons come up in almost every conversation I have about this: currency, and geography. On currency, if your salary is in rand, your house is in rand and your whole portfolio is in rand, your entire financial life rises and falls with one currency. Holding some of your wealth in hard currency doesn't mean you think the rand is doomed, it just means you're not betting your whole future on one outcome either way. On geography, the JSE makes up less than 1% of total global stock market value. Some of the biggest growth stories in the world right now, in tech, in healthcare, aren't listed here at all. Investing offshore isn't a vote against South Africa, it's just access to the other 99%. Now here's a case worth knowing about, because it shows how badly this can go if someone tries to get clever with the rules instead of just following them. In Singh v South African Reserve Bank, decided by the Pretoria High Court in 2023, an attorney and businessman moved R80 million between local accounts, with about R20 million of it headed for a UK bank account. The problem wasn't the amount, it was how it moved, in R1 million chunks, each one apparently using someone else's Single Discretionary Allowance instead of his own. His bank picked it up and reported it to the Reserve Bank, who placed a blocking order on the remaining R40 million sitting in his account back home. He went to court arguing his bank had approved the transfers, so it must have been fine. The court didn't agree. A bank can't lawfully approve something that breaches exchange control in the first place, and the blocking order stood. If you genuinely need to move more than R2 million a year, that's exactly what the Foreign Investment Allowance is for. It just takes proper paperwork, not creativity.  A few practical things that catch people out: Your allowance resets every calendar year, it doesn't carry over if you don't use it. A clean SARS record matters. Outstanding returns or disputes will delay your approval, and it can take up to three weeks even when everything's in order. Financial institutions want proof of where the money actually came from, especially as the amount grows. Moving a big amount in one go means you're stuck with whatever the exchange rate happens to be that day, that's a separate risk from the compliance side, and worth thinking through. One more thing, since estate planning is where I spend most of my time. Assets held directly offshore, in your own name, usually fall under the estate administration rules of wherever they're held, not just South Africa's. That can mean your executor needs a foreign grant of probate before anything can be dealt with, on top of the local process. It doesn't mean don't do it. It just means the structure deserves as much thought as the decision to invest offshore in the first place. This is general information, not advice tailored to your situation. Ruvan J Grobler FSA® PGDip (Financial planning)

Immigrante in Suid-Afrika

July 24, 2026
Die immigrantekwessie het die afgelope paar jaar een van die mees omstrede politieke en sosiale onderwerpe in Suid-Afrika geword. Openbare debat word dikwels aangevuur deur kommer oor werkloosheid, misdaad, druk op openbare dienste en die teenwoordigheid van ongedokumenteerde immigrante. In dieselfde asem waarsku navorsers dat 'n groot deel van die debat deur wanopvattings en emosies beïnvloed word eerder as deur feite. Kom ons kyk na die bekommernisse en die feite. Eerstens is daar opvattings oor die getal immigrante in Suid-Afrika. Volgens die jongste data het Suid-Afrika tussen ongeveer 2,4 en 2,6 miljoen buitelandsgebore inwoners. Dit verteenwoordig sowat vier persent van die totale bevolking van ongeveer 63 miljoen mense. Die grootste groepe kom uit Zimbabwe, Mosambiek, Lesotho en Malawi. Werkloosheid vorm 'n tweede bekommernis. Suid-Afrika het een van die hoogste werkloosheidskoerse ter wêreld. Baie Suid-Afrikansers ervaar dat immigrante werksgeleenthede wegneem, veral in die informele sektor, kleinhandel, konstruksie en landbou. Die oorsake van werkloosheid lê waarskynlik veel dieper en hou verband met swak ekonomiese groei, onvoldoende vaardighede, korrupsie en beperkte belegging. 'n Derde bekommernis is druk op openbare dienste. Hospitale, skole, behuisingsprojekte en munisipale dienste verkeer reeds, soos dit is, onder groot druk. Waar immigrante hierdie dienste gebruik, ontstaan die persepsie dat skaars hulpbronne verder uitgedun word. Dit is moeilik om die impak werklik te meet. 'n Vierde bekommernis hou verband met ongedokumenteerde immigrasie. Daar bestaan wydverspreide kritiek dat die staat nie sy grense doeltreffend beheer nie. Selfs mense wat positief teenoor immigrasie staan, erken dikwels dat beter administrasie en grensbeheer nodig is. 'n Vyfde bekommernis is misdaad en veiligheid. Sommige politieke groepe verbind immigrasie met misdaad. Statistiese bewyse toon egter nie dat immigrante as groep vir die meeste misdaad verantwoordelik is nie. Tog bly die persepsie sterk, veral in gemeenskappe wat reeds deur misdaad geteister word. Die debat word verder bemoeilik deur die verskil tussen wettige immigrante, vlugtelinge, asielsoekers en ongedokumenteerde persone. Hierdie groepe word dikwels in die openbare debat saamgegooi. Die immigrasievraagstuk gaan dus oor veel meer as net die persentasie immigrante. Dit raak die ekonomie, staatskapasiteit, grensbeheer en die publiek se vertroue in die regering. Die onderliggende probleme van werkloosheid, armoede en swak dienslewering bly waarskynlik die grootste drywers van die huidige spanning. 'n Volhoubare oplossing sal daarom waarskynlik beter immigrasiebestuur en sterker ekonomiese groei vereis. Geksryf deur Koos van die Waterberge vir Bovest