FRIDAY 10.30AM:
The South African Chamber of Business (Sacob) says South Africa’s growth, employment and redistribution (Gear) economic strategy is protecting the country’s economy from the harsh international evaluations other emerging economies are suffering.
Releasing Sacob’s business confidence index on Thursday for October — which remained unchanged from the previous month — economic policy director Ben van Rensburg made a plea for the implementation of Gear which, he said, “is crucial if we want to avoid being vulnerable in future”.
He said the South African economy is still on course for 2% growth this year, although expectations may have to be revised for next year.
BUSINESS BRIEFS
GLOOM ENVELOPES JSE AFTER a week of steady improvements, new anxieties about international market trends caused the JSE to close the week on a weak note — despite the optimistic Chris Stals speech (see left) which failed to lift the gloom. The all share index ended the day down 224 points on 6525, the financial index dropped 260 to close on 9801 and the industrial index finished 289 points lower at 8012.
The rand ended almost two cents weaker to the dollar, closing at R4,8375. Bonds finished the day weaker too. The R150, was at a 14,83% yield — 21 basis points down, while R153 bond was 20,5 points worse at a 14,905% yield.
UK MINISTER IN SA TALKS BRITAIN’S labour government has sent its first cabinet minister to South Africa on business. Agriculture, Fisheries and Food Minister Jack Cunningham arrived in South Africa on Friday for a five-day visit at the invitation of South African Land Affairs and Agriculture Minister Derek Hanekom, which will include meetings with several other ministers, provincial premiers and Deputy President Thabo Mbeki.
TELKOM WILL SUE TELKOM has served papers on the SA Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (Satra) and on the Internet Service Providers’ Association, aiming to reverse last month’s ruling that Internet access fell under a value-added licence rather than Telkom’s exclusive public switched telephone licence. Telkom accuses the regulators of breaching Telkom’s five year licence deal with the government, and of failing to take Telkom’s numerous submissions into account. The pending case could once again stall Internet development while private service providers wait for a verdict. Satra spokesperson Esta Gouws said only: “We will see them in court.”
Report on the Satra decision
BLACK VODACOM BOSS The giant South African cellphone network operator Vodacom has appointed a black managing director, Andrew Mthembu, who starts work in January with the mission of spearheading the company’s move from cellphones into general communications. Current MD Alan Knott-Craig becomes chairman.