Trump Presidency: What does it mean for South Africa?
As the world waits with bated breath for President-elect Donald Trump to be inaugurated as the 45th President of the United State of America, Africans remain uncertain over the plans the former business mogul has for the continent.
Professor of Political Economy, Patrick Bond foresees five dark years ahead for Africa.
With the currencies of many African countries already struggling, making imports more expensive, Bond believes it will not get better under Trump.
Bond says Trump's presidency is the equivalent of PW Botha coming to power.
"Expect and prepare for the worst reactionary politics. It's as if PW Botha was back in the saddle. It's as if we are heading to the 1930 where economic turmoil has created so many victims that they are turning to the so-called man on the white horse, somebody who is going to come in and save him - Donald Trump - but because he can't save them, we're going to see serious political conflicts around the world and within the United States and we need to prepare to give solidarity," says Bond.
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Bond believes the impact of Trump's presidency will lead to the cancelation of many SA/US agreements.
"Some of the relationships that the US and South Africa have developed - like exporting cars and the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) - we can expect those to be shut down as soon as Trump has a chance, which means some of the exporters may have to start laying off people of their factories and anything that is exported from SA to the US could have new terrors, because Trump is threatening a trade war to protect his manufacturing works. So, we would probably have higher unemployment," says Bond.
Bond also expects junk status for South Africa by mid-year.
"We are going to have financial turmoil. We're going to have the kind of mess that we say in 2008, 2001 and 1998. Those moments where we have big economic chaos and the rand crashes," says Bond.
He says we say the effect on the rand after Trump was elected.
"Huge amounts of money flooded out of South Africa and other emerging markets to the United States, because the big corporates on Wall Street were doing so well," says Bond.
Bond also explained what effect Trump's president will have on the country and commodities.