UK hotels and brewing company Bass has declined to comment on a Financial Times report that it has put its beer division up for sale to focus on the faster growing leisure and hotels operations. Bass shares, which have underperformed the market by 18% in the past year, edged up just one penny to 696p […]

A FIRE at a refugee camp in northwestern Kenya has destroyed 500 huts and left at least 3000 refugees without shelter. The cause of the fire, which erupted on Thursday at a UN refugee camp at Kakuma, 600 kilometers northwest of the capital Nairobi, has not yet been established. One witness, speaking on condition of […]

SHARES in the world’s top platinum and palladium producers, Anglo American Platinum (Amplats) and Impala Platinum Holdings stumbled on Friday on news Russia planned to resume platinum group supplies. Platinum on Friday was fixed at $715,00 an ounce after hitting an all-time high of $735,00 on Thursday, while platinum was fixed at $537,00 an ounce. […]

PAPER and pulp group Sappi said on Friday it has received an offer from Italy’s Favini Group to acquire its Astralux brand of cast coated papers. Sappi said in a statement that acceptance of the offer would result in the production of cast coated papers at its Blackburn mill in Britain ceasing on May 14, […]

ZIM President Robert Mugabe celebrates a subdued birthday on Monday, still stung by last week’s defeat in a national referendum on a draft new constitution his government sponsored. The veteran leader turns 76, and is still keeping the southern African nation of 12-million people guessing about his political intentions even after suffering his first electoral […]

AN Mpumalanga farmer had to hire a helicopter from Durban, at the cost of more than R250000 over the past three days, to transport feed for his chickens from a delivery point a mere 8km away. The floods have churned up the dirt road connecting farm to the main tar road to White River. “It […]

FRANCOIS Davids has been appointed as the new Convenor of the Springbok selection committee following a recent Sarfu executive committee meeting. Davids, a member of the Springbok selection committee since March 1996, replaces Mickey Gerber. He is joined on the selection committee by former Springbok Captain Wynand Claassen and Springbok coach Nick Mallett. Francois has […]

FLOOD-DEVASTATED Mozambiquans are bracing themselves for the arrival of tropical cyclone Eline on Monday afternoon. The Weather Bureau in Pretoria said on Sunday that the cyclone will probably announce its arrival with heavy showers over southern Mozambique. The cyclone has already killed two people in Madagascar and has since been crossing the Mozambique Channel. The […]

SOUTH African fast-bowler Allan Donald said on Thursday that his long-time English county Warwickshire’s decision not to release him to play six one-day matches against Australia is a “little harsh.” “If I play the six one-day games then I haven’t got a contract for six months. “But I still would have loved to play,” said […]

OWN CORRESPONDENT, Vosloorus | Saturday 6.00pm. BENNI McCarthy scored on his return to international football as South Africa’s under23 side — Amaglug-glug — defeated Cameroon 2-0 in an Olympic Games qualifier on Saturday. Voted best player of the 1998 African Nations Cup after finishing joint leading scorer, McCarthy quit last September because he claimed regular […]