Capital asset Property of any kind, including assets that are movable or immovable, tangible or intangible, fixed or circulating, but excluding trading stock held for the purpose of realising a financial or economic return.
A capital distribution, according to Sars, is an amount paid to you by the company in respect of which the company did not pay secondary tax on companies. Typically dividends are not capital distributions because they are subject to STC. Capital distributions usually occur on liquidation or deregistration of a company, but can also occur when a company returns a portion of its contributed share capital or share premium account to its shareholders.
Capital expenditure Expenditure on assets that last for a year or more, such as buildings, land, infrastructure and equipment.
Capital flow A flow of investments in and out of the country.
Capital formation A measure of the net increase in the country's total stock of capital goods, after allowing for depreciation.
Capital gain The amount by which the proceeds exceed the base cost
Capital gains tax Tax levied on the income realised from the disposal of a capital asset by a taxpayer. A capital gain is the excess of the selling price over the purchase price of the capital asset.
Capital goods Durable goods used over a period of time for the production of other goods. See also intermediate goods.
Capital loss When an asset is sold for less than it cost
Capital This is the retained revenue you receive from operating your business. Also the funds used for start-up, expansion and maintenance
Capital-output ratio The amount of units of capital employed to produce a certain level of output.
Category A, B and C municipalities The Constitution establishes three categories of municipality: Category A, or metropolitan municipalities; Category B, or local municipalities; and Category C, or district municipalities.
Close corporation Close corporations are characterised by their members and the risk carried by the members extends no further than the amount paid for their interest
Collective bargaining Negotiations between employees and employers on procedures and rules to cover conditions of work and rates of pay.
Company (private and public) Company has a share capital and is characterised by the fact that the risk carried by the contributors of the share capital extends no further than the amount they paid for their shares
Conditional grants Allocations of money from one sphere of government to another, conditional on certain services being delivered or on compliance with specified requirements.
Consolidated expenditure Total expenditure by national and provincial government, social security funds and selected public entities, including transfers and subsidies to municipalities, businesses and other entities.
Consolidated general government National, provincial and local government, as well as extra-budgetary
Consumption expenditure Expenditure on goods and services, including salaries, which are used up within a short period of time, usually a year. See also current expenditure.
Contingency reserve An amount set aside, but not allocated in advance, to accommodate changes to the economic environment and to meet unforeseeable spending pressures.
Contingent liabilities A government obligation that will only result in expenditure upon the occurrence of a specific event - such as a government guarantee.
Controlled foreign entity A foreign business in which South Africans hold a greater than 50 per cent interest, usually of the share capital of a company.
Corporatisation The transformation of state-owned enterprises into commercial entities, subject to commercial legal requirements and governance structures, while retaining state ownership.
Cost of sales The cost price of inventory sold during an accounting period.
Cost-push inflation Inflation that is caused by an increase in production costs, such as wages or oil prices.
Coupon (bond) The periodic interest payment made to bondholders during the life of the bond. The interest is usually paid twice a year.
CPIX inflation A measurement of the price increases of a basket of consumer goods and services. This measure differs from the consumer price index in that it excludes mortgage costs.
Credit rating An indicator of the risk of default by a borrower or the riskiness of a financial instrument.
Creditors These are your suppliers. This includes people and companies who have given you credit or terms, and they would have to be repaid by you or the company at a future date.
Crowding-in Increase of private investment through the income-raising effect of government spending financed by deficits.
Crowding-out A fall in private investment or consumption as a result of increased government expenditure financed through borrowing, thereby competing for loanable funds and raising the interest rate, which curtails private investment and consumption spending.
Current account (of the balance of payments) The difference between total imports and total exports, also taking into account service payments and receipts, interest, dividends and transfers. The current account can be in deficit or surplus.
Current assets Those items that the company or yourself physically own, including any amounts owed to the company, e.g. money in the bank, debtors, petty cash and stock
Current expenditure (see consumption expenditure) Government expenditure on goods and services, such as salaries, rent, maintenance and interest payments.
