South African mobile operator MTN on Wednesday reported a 27,5% increase in adjusted headline earnings per share to 278,5 cents for the six months ended June from 218,4 cents for the six months ended September 2005. MTN also advised that its subscribers were up 9,4% to 25,4-million for the six months to June.
More than 40 people were killed in bomb attacks in Iraq on Wednesday morning, including 24 at a busy market in Baghdad where insurgents seem intent on defying a major United States-backed security clampdown now in its fourth week. A further 35 people were wounded in the attack on the Shorja wholesale market in central Baghdad, police said.
Support for Jacob Zuma was support ”for the revolution” and not just an individual, Congress of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu) general secretary Zwelinzima Vavi said on Wednesday. Vavi said the country’s leadership had claimed great progress while ignoring the principal economic challenges that faced working people.
The Moerane commission, which investigated South Africa’s fuel-supply crisis suffered late last year, has reported that another supply crisis could emerge in the second half of this year because of scheduled refinery shutdowns. But Minister of Minerals and Energy Buyelwa Sonjica says she has a task team in place with the industry.
The South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) announced on Wednesday that it has posted an after-tax profit of R383-million for the 2005/06 financial year. This is a 97% increase on the adjusted figure of R194-million for last year. The public broadcaster also reported marked audience growth across most of its radio and television platforms.
Springbok coach Jake White named a formidable team with five changes for his team’s Tri-Nations clash against the All Blacks on Saturday. Sharks loose forward AJ Venter makes a return to international rugby at number eight after having last played for the Springboks in 2004 at Twickenham.
A large segment of South Africa’s black middle class believes marketers and advertisers are making stereotyped efforts to connect with them, according to a study released on Tuesday. The study says 49% of the group feel that they are misrepresented in the media by local marketers and advertisers.
National Assembly questions to South African President Thabo Mbeki have been postponed because the head of state has influenza and has been told by a military doctor ”to rest”, the Director General in the Presidency, Frank Chikane, reported to members of the media at Parliament. The questions were to have been put to the president on Wednesday afternoon.
National police chief Jackie Selebi has taken a Free State judge’s criticism on delays in DNA testing to the head of forensics, his office said on Wednesday. ”The national commissioner did speak to the divisional commissioner in charge of forensics today [Wednesday],” said Selebi’s spokesperson, Director Sally de Beer.
A heatwave in The Netherlands in July caused about 1 000 more deaths than a normal July, the Dutch statistics office said on Wednesday. The statistics office said an average of 2 730 people died each week in July — the hottest month since Dutch records started in 1706 — compared with a normal figure of about 2 500.