With all the Schools back into the swing of 2014 we see everything going up...! Huge fuel price increases on a monthly basis, coupled with the pressure the Rand/Dollar Exchange Rate is under, resulted in our first interest rate hike with the prime lending rate being increased by 0.5%! We are now also in the midst of labour unrest ("strike season" they call it) with strikes for higher wages hitting almost anyone with a labour force of 2 or more. With inflation on a steady upward spiral, the pressure to live and put food on the table increases daily.