South African Reserve Bank – Annual Report (2010–11)

The South African Reserve Bank's Annual Report, published on Tuesday, said there were no obvious threats to the stability of the South African financial system, although reforms to the central bank's financial stability body had been made.

In the opening message, Gill Marcus, the governor of the South African Reserve Bank, said: "Without being complacent, our view is that at this stage there are no obvious threats to domestic financial stability: credit extension by banks is subdued and there is no evidence of incipient asset market bubbles."

Marcus said the financial crisis had focused attention on financial stability issues and showed that it should be seen as a separate objective. She said just as a number of central banks have been given explicit financial stability mandates, the central bank's Financial Stability Committee had been given a wider remit too, with responsibility for macroprudential oversight and policy implementation. "This is uncharted territory, and work is being undertaken to determine the exact nature of such oversight and appropriate policy instruments," she said.

Click here to the report.