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/ 17 February 2005
Distell Group, South Africa’s largest listed wine and spirits producer, increased its marketing and advertising spending by 17% for the six-month period to end-December 2004, compared to a year earlier, in a bid to overcome extremely competitive conditions in the South African alcoholic beverages market, according to managing director Jan Scannell.
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/ 15 February 2005
South African shipping group Grindrod has invested nearly R2-billion in a major expansion of its shipping fleet in recent weeks. The company bought a geared container ship of 605 twenty-foot equivalent units for $7-million and has ordered four new 12Â 800 deadweight ton (dwt) oil/chemical tankers.
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/ 15 February 2005
Financial services group Investec has raised R1-billion via its public offer of preference shares, increasing the number of new shares issued from five million to 10-million to help meet demand for the shares. Combined with its previous private placement totalling R1,3-billion, the group has raised R2,3-billion via preference share issues.
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/ 14 February 2005
Sakhikamva Investments, a broad- based black empowerment (BEE) investment company with shareholders including The Big Issue and the Black Sash Trust, has declared its third dividend of R200 per share to its shareholders. Sakhikamva was established in 2001 to facilitate broad-based, grassroots participation in the empowerment process.
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/ 7 February 2005
The partnerships between De Beers and the governments of diamond-producing countries will be key in transforming the diamond industry going forward, but as the senior partner, the South African government should use its stick "very infrequently" or the company could "disengage", De Beers chairperson Nicky Oppenheimer has cautioned.
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/ 7 February 2005
The likelihood of a 50 basis-point cut in interest rates by the South African Reserve Bank (SARB) stands at about 60%, according to Lehman Brothers economist Tolga Ediz. Commenting in a recent research note, the London-based Ediz said that the choice facing the SARB’s monetary policy committee at its February meeting will not be an easy one.
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/ 2 February 2005
Listed media group Moneyweb Holdings has agreed to sell 80% of its 19,62% stake in radio station Classic FM to empowerment group Huntrex for a cash consideration of R4-million, Moneyweb said on Wednesday. Moneyweb said the disposal will take effect from the earlier of February 15 or the payment of the first tranche of R2-million.
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/ 1 February 2005
Unity Insurance — a new short-term insurance company owned 50,1% by Telesure Investments, the holding company of Auto & General, and 49,9% by a variety of black shareholders — has been launched in South Africa, the company said on Tuesday. Unity aims to bring black-empowered insurance products to the South African market.
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/ 1 February 2005
Listed black economic empowerment fishing, medical equipment and information technology group Sekunjalo Investments has acquired 81,56% of the entire issued capital in the computer company Synergy Computing. The acquisition of Synergy boosts Sekunjalo’s strategic growth in its IT portfolio
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/ 28 January 2005
Beer remained the fastest-growing and top-selling alcoholic beverage in South Africa in 2004 — with the premium beer segment posting excellent growth of about 18%. The segment lifted its share of the total liquor sector to more than 80% (by volume in litres) and took away market share from all other drinks, apart from flavoured alcoholic beverages.