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Why is rand weak right now
The rand is much lower versus major currencies, owing to global and domestic pressures. On Tuesday (7 February), the local currency fell to a low of R17.69 per dollar, rebounding only marginally to roughly R17.55 on Wednesday morning. The rand's decline, according to Investec chief economist Annabel Bishop, is mostly due to risk sentiment changing,
What to expect from Ramaphosa's State of the Nation Address today
On Thursday, President Cyril Ramaphosa will make his annual State of the Nation Address (SONA) (9 February). The State of the Nation Address (SONA) is an important opportunity for the public to learn about the government's plans and priorities for the next year. With South Africa experiencing record load shedding and cash-strapped customers struggling to
<strong>Cape Town launches initiative to place the city as the gateway to Antarctica</strong>
The mayor of Cape Town Geordin Hill-Lewis has just launched a massive initative to position Cape Town as the ‘Gateway to Antarctica’. Hill-Lewis took the world’s most extraordinary day-trip from the Mother City to the remote continent on Monday. Per a statement from the City of Cape Town, the mayor was joined by Alderman James
Mining giant Anglo American decries Transnet’s continuous failures, calls for action
Mining giant Anglo American is now calling for a private-public partnership that will see Transnet back to its best. According to Anglo American's CEO, Duncan Wanblad, he says the partnership will improve performance at South Africa's state-owned rail and port firm Transnet. Transnet has failed to meet demand and has hampered the miners' ability to
Congo's president seeks additional green energy metal exploration
Tshisekedi stated that exploration for the two minerals will begin "in the coming days" in Congo's southern, diamond-rich Kasai area. According to President Felix Tshisekedi, the Democratic Republic of the Congo intends to position itself as a vital supply of metals in the green energy transition, which would include additional nickel and chrome discoveries. Exploration
Permanent power outages are the new normal in South Africa
Electricity shortages are a "permanent new reality" for South African businesses, according to retailer Pick & Pay Stores Ltd. The associated costs are significant. Despite the worst national power outages on record, the country's largest food stores have upped their investments in standby generators, rooftop solar panels, and refrigerated trailer trucks. Shoprite Holdings Ltd. said
Microsoft is deleting the data of free Teams corporate users unless they purchase a premium subscription
Unless customers subscribe to a commercial version, Microsoft will destroy data from the free tier of its Teams productivity programme for small enterprises. The business just introduced a new Teams edition that includes an AI-powered Premium iteration. Along with the new Premium edition, Microsoft is introducing an upgraded "Teams (free)" service and will phase down
Pick n Pay spends roughly R350 million on diesel in just ten months
Retailers encourage the government to come up with a long-term solution to load shedding as soon as possible. Despite increased sales, supermarket retailer Pick n Pay said it spent about R350 million on fuel to keep generators operating at its stores in order to avoid the effects of load shedding on its operations. Consumer demand
There's a lot to read in Spar CEO's easy exit
The wording employed by the board to describe Brett Botten's departure minimises the gravity of the situation. What should the board do when its CEO is embroiled in a minor but damaging incident involving dubious accounting practises? Of course, you'd fire him, right? But it was too much for Spar, one of the country's largest
Slight but uninspiring increase for the BETI in January
‘More-of-the-same’ can be expected in 2023 as challenges to the economy prevail After breaking six months of declines in December, the BankservAfrica Economic Transactions Index (BETI) improved again in January 2023. Yet, despite this positive movement, ‘more-of-the-same’ can be expected this year as economic woes prevail. “The BETI improved to an index level of
<strong>AfriSam sets the standard in sustainable business practices</strong>
AfriSam is the long-standing leader of sustainable construction materials manufacturing in South Africa, having reduced its carbon emissions by 33% since 1990, leading the pack in South Africa to decarbonise cement manufacturing. The cement conglomerate emphasises its sustainability push to 'green' the sector at several levels at the same time, positioning it as a pioneer in
Apple expands the testing of its interest-free "buy now, pay later" offering
Apple Inc. has expanded an internal test of its forthcoming "buy now, pay later" service to the company's thousands of retail employees, indicating that the long-awaited feature is approaching completion. According to Apple employees who begged not to be identified, the tech giant approached retail employees last week to give them a prototype version of
Insurance providers in South Africa have included an exclusion for total Eskom grid failure
Several major South African insurance firms have refused to cover their clients for certain damages caused by Eskom's power grid outage. Moneyweb broke the story after obtaining an email from Hollard Insurance informing consumers of a new "Electricity Grid Failure" exclusion added to their plans. Hollard spokeswoman Warwick Bloom noted that although a total grid
In South Africa, 82% of grade 4 students are unable to read for meaning
Fewer primary school students can read for meaning now than before the Covid epidemic, and the majority of children entering grade two are illiterate. Despite the fact that there is a literacy crisis, there is no national reading strategy, no suitable funding, no reliable reporting, and no progress on implementing critical interventions. The findings of
Search for a new Eskom CEO is already underway says board member Mteto Nyati
The embattled power generator, Eskom, is already working hard to appoint a new CEO following the resignation of Andre de Ruyter. According to the Eskom board member Mteto Nyati, he said that the process to hire a competent and experienced CEO is already underway. The new CEO’s primary tasks will be to keep the lights
Burger King and several companies urge Cyril Ramaphosa to curb fuel tax levies
BusinessTech Africa has gathered that companies such as Coca Cola and Burger King have asked President Cyril Ramaphosa to cut fuel taxes. Per a report on Fin24, the Consumer Goods Council of South Africa (CGCSA) wrote a letter to Ramaphosa urging him to scrap the sugar tax, as well as suspend the fuel duty and
Mining Indaba: Mantashe calls on investors to put money as he unveils load shedding plans
South African mineral resources and energy minister Gwede Mantashe has urged investors to put money into the local economy. Mantashe was speaking during the ongoing Mining Indaba that is held in Cape Town and said the government had the plan to resolve load-shedding. During his opening address, Mantashe also presented a four-point plan that he
Exciting News for Property owners in Cape Town
The City of Cape Town is developing a new online gateway to let the public and professionals transact development-related business with the City's Development Management Department. The new portal, billed as a one-stop shop for city development operations, will go live on February 27th, providing expanded services to citizens and professionals who have already enrolled
South Africa has 26 megaprojects planned, including a new R5 billion smart city and a major push towards renewable energy
Nedbank has released its revised Capital Expenditure Project Listing for 2022, which details the major capital projects presently ongoing in South Africa. According to the bank, fixed investment activity in the nation would moderate in 2022 as significant local and domestic headwinds unsettle and erode company confidence. The value of new projects announced this year
WhatsApp is getting a significant photo and video sharing update
WhatsApp will more than triple the existing limit for the amount of media assets users may share in a single message. According to WABetaInfo, the most recent Android beta update of the popular chat app allows some users to share up to 100 movies, photos, or other files at once. Currently, WhatsApp users who are