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/ 20 October 2004

Free lottery ticket hits the jackpot

A Portuguese car mechanic who was given a lottery ticket as a tip, after earlier refusing to buy it, has scooped a €50 000 jackpot, a local newspaper reported on Wednesday. Lottery salesperson Jose Macedo tried to sell the €5 winning ticket to Artur Luis but ended up giving it to the mechanic.

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/ 20 October 2004

Godzilla to join stars on Walk of Fame

Godzilla, the fire-breathing movie monster born in a nuclear accident, is joining Hollywood royalty with a star on the Walk of Fame. A ceremony will honour the giant lizard in front of Hollywood Boulevard’s famed Grauman’s Chinese Theatre on November 29, the world premiere of Godzilla Final Wars, Toho Pictures president Shogo Tomiyama said on Wednesday.

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/ 20 October 2004

Rise of the machines

Worldwide sales of industrial robots surged to record levels in the first half of 2004 after equipment prices fell while labour costs grew, the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) said on Wednesday. In an annual survey, the UNECE said the number of robots in operation in industry exceeded the 800 000 mark for the first time at the end of 2003.

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/ 20 October 2004

Free State govt takes over three municipalities

The Free State government has decided that three of the province’s bigger district municipalities be placed under administration because they cannot perform their duties. Free State premier Beatrice Marshoff said on Wednesday that the Motheo, Moqhaka and Phumelela municipalities had been informed that they would be placed under administration.

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/ 20 October 2004

JSE sees red as world markets, rand weigh

The JSE Securities Exchange was awash with red in noon trade on Wednesday on the back of weaker world markets and a stronger rand – even though the currency had come off its best levels seen earlier in the morning. Weakness was most pronounced on the Top 40 index, where decliners outnumbered advancers by more than four to one.

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/ 20 October 2004

Strongest typhoon in decade pounds Japan

At least 15 people were killed and 20 others were missing on Wednesday as Japan’s biggest typhoon for more than a decade pounded the south of the country with heavy rain and powerful winds, officials said. Typhoon Tokage, which also injured at least 31 people, became the record 10th typhoon to land on the Japanese islands in a year.

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/ 20 October 2004

US citizens in South Africa cast votes

Scores of United States citizens cast their ballots on Tuesday in Cape Town, ahead of the November presidential election in the US, with the number of voters taking officials by surprise, a US consulate spokesperson said. The consulate staged a ”voting event” for the November 2 election, in which citizens living in the Western Cape could come and cast their ballots, said Louis Nazer.