ALLAN SECCOMBE, Johannesburg | Tuesday A EUROPEAN Union official says she is ”fairly confident” EU inspectors will recommend lifting a ban on imports of South African meat, imposed after a foot-and-mouth disease outbreak last month. An EU team will inspect the affected area in eastern KwaZulu-Natal and speak to national and provincial agriculture ministries later […]

THREE of the world’s biggest mining groups have announced an alliance with commodity trader Glencore International AG to set up global Internet marketplaces for trading commodities, starting with coal. Rio Tinto Plc/Ltd, Anglo American Plc, Billiton Plc and Swiss-based Glencore said they would join Internet firm Accel-KKR Company LLC to develop online marketplaces for trading […]

THE sound of gunshots echoed in many parts of the West Bank overnight as Israelis and Palestinians marked the start of the 27th day of clashes with more bloodshed. As the wave of violence continued, Palestinians planned to march on Israeli checkpoints to protest Israel’s ban on Palestinian labourers entering the Jewish State. – Reuters

SOUTH African carryover maize stock for the 2000/01 March-April marketing year is expected to be 2.724m tonnes, more than double the previous year’s figure, Grain SA said this week. The carryover figure would represent about 34% of South Africa’s expected domestic consumption of 7.9m tonnes this season. Carryover of unutilised maize for the previous year […]

FOOD-price riots broke out in Zimbabwe’s eastern city of Mutare less than a week after similar protests in the capital Harare, but police moved in quickly to quell them, state news agency ZIANA reported. Police arrested 19 protesters after a group of rioters allegedly looted bread from a supermarket and assaulted a security guard. – […]

SILVIA ALOISI, Abidjan | Tuesday THE organisers of Ivory Coast’s presidential poll have delayed the release of the election results, raising fears among supporters of Socialist Laurent Gbagbo that the ruling junta may be trying to cheat him of victory. A National Electoral Commission (CNE) official said it would resume announcing results after a 12-hour […]

A MOVE to ban women from working in gas stations and restaurants in the state of Khartoum was ”not considered beforehand,” the Sudanese justice minister said. However, he would not call the move unconstitutional, and warned that laws not in line Islamic Sharia law were being revised. – Reuters

ZIMBABWE Platinum Mines Ltd (Zimplats) said this week that a new fiscal regime for the mining industry was among key requirements for the company to proceed with a promising platinum mining project. Zimplats is 51% owned by Australia’s Delta Gold. The company acquired the Zimbabwean platinum operations of Australia’s BHP Ltd in 1999 after BHP […]

A STEAMY sex session between two goats led to the temporary closure of a high school in northern Swaziland last week. The amorous twosome disrupted classes at Timphisini Central High School after running into a Grade 8 classroom to engage in frenetic sex as bemused pupils watched. As the classroom erupted into catcalls and applause […]