South Africa appears to have taken the privatisation of state-owned assets off the agenda in favour of increasing black participation in the mainstream economy, but this does not mark a shift in policy.
The 2004 national budget tabled on Wednesday projected meagre privatisation revenue inflows - 2.5 billion rand ($375.2 million) a year in fiscal 2004/05 and 2005/06 - and made no mention of any major privatisation projects during the coming financial year.
Analysts said this suggested the sale of 30 percent of power utility Eskom's generation capacity might not happen before 2006. Eskom, one of the world's top seven power utilities in terms of capacity, is seen as a jewel in the stalled process.
But Finance Minister Trevor Manuel said this week the process is still on track and that the government never promised "that we will have a bargain basement sale".
He also pointed out that companies earmarked for the step still needed restructuring to make them attractive.
"What we are definitely seeing now from the government is a move towards more accelerated reform, more of an effort to close the income gap in South Africa," said Razia Khan, chief Africa economist at Standard Chartered Bank in London.
"Black economic empowerment (BEE) is one means towards that. Given that that is the case, I don't think privatisation is necessarily going to be top of the agenda."
BEE is a cornerstone of the drive by the ruling African National Congress to transfer wealth to the black majority which was left out of the mainstream economy under nearly half a century of apartheid.
A decade after democracy, wide income disparities remain and the country's formal economy is still controlled by whites, who comprise less than ten percent of the population of 45 million.