South Africa’s National Treasury plans to use 150 bln rand from the central bank’s contingency reserves for early debt repayment to manage borrowing requirements and keep debt below 80% of GDP. The budget deficit is estimated at 4.3% of GDP for FY24-25, down from 4.7% the previous year, relying on spending cuts and additional tax revenue of 15 bln rand. However, there’s a risk of missing new spending targets, with Bloomberg economists forecasting a budget deficit close to 5% of GDP in FY23-24 and around 4.5% in the following year.