The Cosafa Cup semifinal against Zambia on Saturday presents Bafana Bafana with an opportunity to cement a self-proclaimed reputation as the regional soccer super power. But for coach Stuart Baxter, a priority might be to see how the match will help him assemble the most effective squad for the vital World Cup qualifying game against Burkina Faso.
The countrywide strike by members of the South African Municipal Workers’ Union is likely to end on Saturday, a KwaZulu-Natal union representative said. Meanwhile, the City of Cape Town has been granted a court order against Samwu strikers, and protests seem to have died down in the Free State and Gauteng.
With the JSE Securities Exchange galloping past the 15 200 mark after another meteoric rise of 22% so far this year, one has to question whether it is wise to be investing in shares at the moment. Or is the market reaching the sort of temperature that could cause burns?
Reserve Bank Governor Tito Mboweni kept the repo rate unchanged as oil prices touched record highs and wage settlements remained firmly under the spotlight. The move to keep rates on hold was seen by the Nedbank economic unit as creating room for a cut in October. A lot depends on the behaviour of oil prices and the rand between now and then.
"When the dust has settled in Sydney on Saturday, expect to see the Wallabies firmly back in the Tri-Nations picture. Two weeks have passed since Eddie Jones and his squad flew back home after a mauling in South Africa, and let no one tell you the man who is officially rugby’s smartest coach has spent all this time tearing out his hair in frustration," writes Rob Davies.
Hamas will not surrender its weapons to the Palestinian Authority in the Gaza Strip after Israel’s pull-out from the territory, one of the Islamist movement’s top leaders said on Friday. ”This army will continue to defend our homeland as long as one inch of Palestine remains occupied,” Mahmud Zahar told reporters.
A Nasa spacecraft blasted off on Friday into a golden early-morning sky, beginning a mission to Mars to gather more data on the Red Planet than all combined previous missions. The Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter lifted off on an Atlas V rocket on a seven-month journey to Mars.
Zimbabwean lawyers on Friday braced for a fight with the state over proposed constitutional changes published by the Zimbabwean government last month and aimed at barring white farmers from challenging land grabs in court and preventing people deemed anti-government from going overseas.
Anglo American and Old Mutual have both received a political pat on the back by President Thabo Mbeki for their black economic empowerment initiatives. In his regular internet column, <i>ANC Today</i>, Mbeki added that the country has taken the decision to realise the goal for a better life for all.
Increasing numbers of exiles are returning to Burundi, as confidence seems to be growing that peace has returned to their homeland, the United Nations refugee agency said on Friday. Last week alone, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees helped 4 200 Burundians go home from Tanzania and Rwanda.