THE Ghanaian government and central bank officials have been in intensive discussions since Monday on the future of the Bank for Housing and Construction and Co-operative Bank, which have been liquidated following heavy losses. The government has, meanwhile, approved a scheme to protect depositors of the two banks. Government Monday closed down the two banks […]

OWN CORRESPONDENT, Cape Town | Thursday 6.00pm. THE leading yacht in the Cape to Rio 2000 yacht race, the Californian maxi Zephyrus IV, is expected to cross the finish line in Rio de Janeiro early on Friday local time, organisers said. At 07:00 GMT Thursday, the yacht, skippered by Robert McNeil, was only 255 miles […]

FIVE people were killed on Wednesday and six were injured when gunmen attacked a bus in the north of the Somali capital, Mogadishu. The gunmen sprayed the bus with bullets without warning at the north Mogadishu Sana bus station, according to the witness, who was among the passengers. Among those killed was a wealthy businessman, […]

OWN CORRESPONDENT, Lagos | Thursday 11.00am US oil giant Texaco has struck oil off the coast of Nigeria with a find estimated at around one billion barrels, valued at $25-billion at current prices, the company confirmed Wednesday. Texaco Overseas Oil Corporation and a Nigerian partner, FAMFA Oil, made the find in a deep-water offshore field […]

CREDIT rating agency Fitch IBCA on Monday affirmed the national claims paying ability of South African insurer Santam Ltd at AA+ and its international claims paying ability at BBB. The decision followed Santam’s R1,58-billion offer for rival Guardian National. Santam will finance part of the purchase through a R1-billion ights issue and has said the […]

ONE of the three suspects arrested in connection with the murder of Brenda Fairhead, 55, and her daughter Kia, 11, appeared in the Port Alfred Magistrate’s Court on Wednesday, SABC radio news reported. The 16-year-old suspect’s evidence was heard in camera. Police are formulating murder, robbery and kidnapping charges against him. His mother asked that […]

ERITREANS should be able to access the internet starting next month following the arrival of necessary equipment, according to Estifanos Afewerki, head of the national telecommunications service. “We should have internet by the end of February,” Estifanos told AFP Tuesday afternoon. The equipment arrived from the United States on Monday after several months of delays. […]

MEMBERS of rival student unions in Burkina Faso’s capital used batons and bludgeons against each another during clashes on Wednesday at the University of Ouagadougou campus. The clashes broke out after the National Union of Faso Students (UNEF) ordered a four-day strike beginning on Monday, while the larger National Association of Burkinabe Students (ANEB) expressed […]

BIDDER for the third cellphone licence say they might as well throw in the towell after South African Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (Satra) on Tuesday began a process of amending the MTN and Vodacom licences to include the coveted 1800 GSM as well as the current 900 GSM frequency. Business Day reports that bidders say they […]

CANADIAN gold producer Placer Dome said on Monday its joint venture with South Africa’s Western Areas Ltd is unaffected by the shock resignation of Western Areas’ deputy chairman Brett Kebble at the weekend. Vancouver-based Placer also said it was confident of Western Areas’ ability to meet its financial commitments to the promising South Deep gold […]