MONDAY, 1.30PM
VEHICLE sales for September were down 0.5 percent from September 1996, but are up by about a thousand sales on August. New car sales were up 3% on last September, but analysts doubt that the strong sales will last into the last quarter of the year as interest rates begin to bite.
Exports of South-African manufactured vehicles show an encouraging upward trend, with sales up 50% this year to date, to 9 927 units in September.
BUSINESS BRIEFS
84% OF GOVT DEBT NEEDS SECURED
GOVERNMENT has funded 84%, or R30,77-billion, of its gross funding requirements for the first half of the fiscal year, the finance department said on Thursday. R1,82-billionn was raised through government bonds last month. Total financing for the month was R4,32-billion. Bond rates are unlikely to come under pressure with only a further R6-billion needed to be raised by fiscal year end.
CLOTHING EXPORT INCENTIVES?
TRADE and Industry Minister Alec Erwin is expected to announce extended export incentives for the clothing industry on Friday. Clothing industry leaders, struggling to become more competitive in global markets, said they expect Erwin to extend the duty credit certificate scheme, which is due to end in March next year. The scheme allows manufacturers to put 30% of the value of exports of clothes made with local fabric towards purchasing imported fabric. The scheme is one of the few demand-side export incentives remaining since the general export incentive scheme expired in June.
IDC SIGNS R260m LOAN
THE Industrial Development Corporation and the European Investment Bank on Tuesday signed a second loan agreement totalling R260-million. The facility, available for 12 years, carries a variable interest rate, but is expected to cost a competitive 15,5% a year.
VAAL REEFS SELL-OFF
MINING house Anglo American said on Thursday it wants to sell seven of the shafts at its Vaal Reefs Mining Company to a small-scale mining company. Anglo also announced the sale of 34,9% of Afrikander Lease to Australian-listed Majestic Resources for R1,25 in cash per share. Anglo said seloing off the seven Vaal Reefs shafts will allow it to concentrate on its remaining long-life shafts, from which it generates most profit.
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