IN BRIEF BEER SPAT MAY COST NAM NAMIBIA might have to wait for its 1997 pay-out from the Southern African Customs Union revenue pool after a dispute over a new duty strucuture on beer, pending a meeting of union officials in Pretoria on Wednesday. Namibia’s decision to grant 1997/98 duty rebates to small brewers — […]

WEDNESDAY, 11.30AM THE official inflation rate in December 1997 was an annualised 6,1%, according to the Central Statistical Service, 0,7 percentage points lower than November’s figure. However, the average inflation rate for the whole year was 8,6%, some 1,2 percentage points higher than the 7,4% recorded in 1996 and 0,1 percentage points lower than 1995’s […]

WEDNESDAY, 5.45PM: THE financial index on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange hit a new record high on Wednesday, helping the industrial and all share indices up 2% each. Unfortunately gold sank below the $299 per ounce level, carrying gold shares down more than 2,5%. After rising 290,2 points, the financial index closed at 11 075, beating […]

WEDNESDAY, 12.15PM: WORLD number three and US Open champion Ernie Els has quit the European Tour in Sydney after a disagreement with Tour boss Ken Schofield on Wednesday. Els said the dispute resulted from by the fact that he had not played the 11 tournaments required to keep his player’s card for this year. Schofield […]

TUESDAY, 12.00NOON: THE court application by the SA Rugby Football Union to pre-empt a judicial commission of inquiry into its affairs got off to a fiery start in the Pretoria High Court on Monday when Sarfu lawyers attacked President Nelson Mandela’s approval of the commission. Senior advocate Mike Maritz, representing Sarfu, the Gauteng Lions, Mpumalanga […]

TUESDAY, 5.30PM: A SOLID day’s trading helped Johannesburg Stock Exchange industrial shares better themselves. Gold stocks fell on weaker bullion prices, but not as much as they could have, said dealers. The positive mood on the markets is probably linked to fewer worries about the Asian economies and a relatively stable Wall Street, despite the […]

TUESDAY, 5.00PM: WATER Affairs and Forestry Minister Kader Asmal on Tuesday unveiled a far-reaching new Water Bill that puts an end to private ownership of water. Asmal said in terms of the proposed new law, the right to use water will no longer be allocated primarily on the basis of land ownership, with allocations to […]

MONDAY, 12.30PM: SOUTH Africa’s Under-19 cricket team may well be through to the final of the MTN Under-19 World Cup, if they can beat Sri Lanka. The tenacious South Africans beat New Zealand by five wickets at Newlands on Sunday after being set a target of 195. South Africa were, however, put under quite a […]

MONDAY, 12.30PM: TIGER Woods’ prediction came true when he beat Ernie Els in a play-off for the Johnnie Walker Classic title after being eight shots adrift entering the last day. Woods shot a 65, and then went on to beat Els on the second hole of a play-off with a 15-foot birdie putt. Woods had […]

MONDAY, 2.30PM: ZIMBABWEAN opener Grant Flower scored his first century in one-day cricket to take Zimbabwe to an imposing total of 281 for six in their third and final one-day international against Sri Lanka in Colombo on Monday. Flower, who was dropped twice by Sanath Jayasuriya on two and 18, made full use of his […]