Cape Town - HSBC's David Faulkner was named South Africa Economist of the Year at the Thomson Reuters Africa summit in Cape Town on Thursday for the most accurate forecasts of 2016 economic data.
Individual and teams of economists from South Africa and abroad were ranked according to the accuracy of their forecasts and frequency of participation in the monthly Reuters Econometer, a long-term economic survey for South Africa.
The survey, which looks two years ahead, covers key indicators including gross domestic product growth, consumer and producer inflation, the current account and the repo rate. About 35 economists from banks, funds, think-tanks and other corporations took part in the competition, now in its 17th year.
Previous South Africa Economist of the Year winners include Credit Guarantee Insurance Corporation's Luke Doig (2015); four-time winner, the Bureau for Economic Research (2014); Industrial Development Corporation (2013); Dennis Dykes of Nedbank (2012) and Dave Mohr of Citadel (2010).
Here are the top 10 ranking of economists:
1. HSBC: David Faulkner
2. Meganomics: Colen Garrow
3. Credit Guarantee: Luke Doig
4. KADD Capital: Elize Kruger
5. NKC African Economy: Christie Viljoen (now at KPMG)
6. Capital Economy: John Ashbourne
7. IDC: Nico Kelder
8. BER: Hugo Pienaar
9. BNP Paribas: Jeffrey Schultz
10. Barclays Africa: Peter Worthington
REUTERS