SOUTH Africas Wayne Ferreira got his Hamburg Masters first-round off to a flyer when he knocked out Australian Pat Rafter on Tuesday. Ferreira was in fine fettle, ousting the 11th-seeded Rafter 6-4, 7-5 to reach the second round of the $2,95-million, the fifth Masters Series event of the year. The 25th-ranked Ferreira made the perfect […]

OWN CORRESPONDENT, Johannesburg | Wednesday 3.45pm. ESKOM, the electricity parastatal, has managed to cut its municipal debt by more than two-thirds in four years, due in part to a tougher stance against defaulting municipalities. In 1996 it stood at R1,54-billion, but Eskom’s Butana Nkosi said on Wednesday it is now at the R450-million mark. Nkosi […]

OWN CORRESPONDENT, London | Wednesday 1.00pm. THE world’s leading diamond miner De Beers announced it is selling its only direct holding in a Russian mine to Alrosa, Russia’s leading diamond miner. A spokeswoman for De Beers said the company had hoped there would be a relaxation in Russia’s legislation to the benefit of foreign investors, […]

OWN CORRESPONDENT, Asmara | Tuesday 6.00pm. ETHIOPIA has stepped up its assault in the border war with Eritrea in a bold offensive into west of the country. Eritrea in response has repeated its call to the United Nations to take action against the “aggressor” in what is thought to be Africa’s bloodiest and most senseless […]

THE World Bank’s outgoing Vice-President Jean-Louis Sarbib has condemned reports in the Economist which depicted Africa as an economic and political basket case. Speaking at a conference in Montreal, Sarbib said it is shortsighted to perceive the entire continent as a high-risk destination for trade and investment and each region and country should be investigated […]

OWN CORRESPONDENT, Jolo | Wednesday 8.50am. GOVERNMENT negotiators are expected to arrive on the southern Philippines island of Jolo on Wednesday to resume talks with Moslem rebels holding 21 hostages, including two South Africans. Journalists who saw the hostages on Tuesday said ailing German housewife Renate Wallert, one of the captives, is very weak and […]

OWN CORRESPONDENT, Freetown | Wednesday 8.50am. NINETY-three exhausted Zambian and Kenyan UN peacekeepers, held hostage for two weeks in the bush by rebels in Sierra Leone, have flown back to the government-controlled capital of Freetown. Wearing a ragged array of uniforms and some shod in flip-flop sandals, they landed at Freetown’s Lungi airport on Tuesday […]

OWN CORRESPONDENT, London | Wednesday 2.00pm. GOLD prices were seen extending losses after overnight falls sparked by the US interest rate rise of 50 basis points. ”The dollar strengthened on the back of higher interest rates, so producing-countries currencies weakened and are putting pressure on gold,” said one European trader said. In the short term, […]

AN investigation has been launched to determine the cause of the underground explosion that killed seven miners at the Beatrix gold mine near Welkom on Monday. Part of the mine was shut down on Monday evening pending the outcome of a meeting with Mineral and Energy Affairs Minister Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, National Union of Mineworkers representatives […]