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/ 4 December 2006
FNB offers by far the most cost effective way for consumers to draw cash and is leaving other banks behind in a drive to deliver affordable cash options to the mass market. By drawing money from certain retail outfits, FNB customers can draw cash for a flat fee of R1,75, slashing ATM costs by two-thirds.
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/ 4 December 2006
The red tide sweeping through Latin America, checked in Peru and MexicoÂ, has achieved another memorable record this week in Ecuador. The substantial electoral victory of Rafael Correa, a clever, young, United States- educated economist and former finance minister, marks a further triumph for Hugo Chávez of Venezuela and his Bolivarian revolution, which has long sought to ignite Latin America’s "second independence".
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/ 4 December 2006
As Quentin Crisp once remarked, rather than being the art of the possible, politics is actually the art of making the inevitable seem planned. So it was that Tony Leon’s announcement that he will soon retire as leader of the Democratic Alliance surprised only those people still hanging on to the forlorn hope that he might one day lead his party into the Union Buildings.
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/ 4 December 2006
The organisation has launched a campaign to encourage communities to support survivors of sexual assault.
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/ 4 December 2006
The Airbus A380, the world’s first "superjumbo", is a plane nervous flyers will love. Capable of seating up to 800 passengers, Airbus promises state-of-the-art safety and stability features. The A380’s maximum cruising altitude of 43 000 feet means it can fly above most other air traffic, as well as most turbulence-causing weather systems, thus ensuring a smoother flight.
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/ 4 December 2006
Being called a "hard-nosed sceptic" is one of the greatest compliments you can receive as a journalist or economic commentator. To be described thus by the president of the country is a rare honour — and I am not engaging in the searing sarcasm the president has visited on those he deems out of line.
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/ 4 December 2006
Reserve Bank Governor Tito Mboweni’s Christmas present to South Africans will be money that costs more. Mboweni and the bank’s monetary policy committee meet on December 6 and 7 to decide on interest rates. Analysts say an interest rate hike of at least 50 basis points is a done deal, but retailers are gearing up for a record-breaking festive season.
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/ 4 December 2006
"Men think that seeking legal protection is a woman’s thing only," says Nombulelo Mkhuma, a paralegal at Tshwaranang Legal Advocacy Centre. A new study points out that both men and women are affected by domestic abuse in their families, although they experience it differently.
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/ 4 December 2006
Michael Jordaan, CEO of First National Bank, was in an upbeat mood when we met for lunch. The latest GDP figures had just been released and bode well for the economy. They also proved that the bank’s position on the economy was correct and that it had not been overly optimistic in its business plans.
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/ 4 December 2006
Colombia’s political establishment has been shaken by near-daily allegations of how President Alvaro Uribe’s allies worked with rightwing militias who for more than a decade used terror in pursuit of their own ends. The Supreme Court has ordered six pro-Uribe lawmakers, including the foreign minister’s brother, to answer questions about alleged links with the paramilitaries who are blamed for the murder of thousands of Colombians.