After two dismal seasons on and off the field, the appearance of Amazulu among the last four clubs remaining in the Nedbank Cup represents a fragile chance to reclaim a tarnished legacy. Last season the lads from the coastal kingdom finished second last on the log, but escaped relegation from the Premiership by winning play-offs against rivals from the lower first division.
The JSE was weaker in quiet trade at midday, weighed down by a firmer rand, lower metal prices and what was described as a disappointing production report from Anglo American. South African markets were closed on Monday for a holiday and are also closed on Thursday and Friday this week, with many players away for the two days in between.
South Africa’s producer price index (PPI) rose by 11,8% year-on-year in March from 11,2% in February, Statistics South Africa data on Thursday showed. Dawie Roodt, economist at Efficient Group, commented: "I am afraid all these price increases from producers will start filtering to consumers."
The JSE remained in the black at midday on Wednesday thanks to firm resources stocks, but banks and financials were under a bit of pressure. By 11.54am the JSE’s broader all-share index was up 0,34%. Resources added 1,01%, but the platinum-mining index, after having being stronger earlier, was now off 0,52% and the gold-mining index was down 1,14%.
It is starting to come together at last for Mamelodi Sundowns. After failing to defend their Absa Premiership title and sacking one of the country’s top coaches in Gordon Igesund earlier this season, the Brazilians have finally turned the corner under caretaker coach Trott Moloto, who replaced Igesund.
South African stocks hung on to earlier gains at noon on Monday, supported by firmer overseas markets, but the stronger rand and faltering gold prices restricted gains, traders said. By midday on Monday, the JSE’s broader all-share index was 0,77% in the black. Resources were up 1,21%, the platinum-mining index advanced 0,34% but the gold-mining index fell 0,70%.
AmaZulu striker Mpho Maleka netted thrice in an enthralling Nedbank Cup quarterfinal match to help his team beat Black Leopards 3-2 at their home ground, the Thohoyandou Stadium, on Sunday. Leopards started off briskly and took the lead through Christopher Netshidzivhe in the 19th minute.
Santos’ 10-week sequence without a defeat under Botswana Army coach Major David Bright was dimmed at Goble Park in Bethlehem on Sunday afternoon as Free State Stars earned a deserved 1-0 victory to qualify for the Nedbank Cup semifinals. Hero on this occasion was Jimmy Kauleza, who scored the solitary goal of the game in the 22nd minute.
FC Cape Town took Mamelodi Sundowns to extra-time before the Premiership side finally triumphed 2-0 in a Nedbank Cup quarterfinal game played at a wet Athlone Stadium on Saturday night. The first half saw FC Cape Town paying scant respect to the Premiership champions as they dominated the game and at times made Sundowns look ordinary.
Black Aces are through to the semifinals of the Nedbank Cup after a resounding 2-0 win over fellow National First Division outfit Nathi Lions at the Atlantic Stadium in Witbank on Saturday. Jacob Machaka netted in the 25th minute and Visiwe Masonda sealed victory for Aces two minutes before half-time with a well-placed effort from the edge of the area.
Ordinarily, this time of the football season would be about which of the traditional top-three teams are best placed to win the Premier Soccer League (PSL) championship. But it increasingly appears that not all, if any, of the three teams that have dominated the PSL honours will make it to the top eight of the log.
Free State Stars coach Kinnah Phiri is hoping that lightning will strike twice in the same place in one season when they host Santos in the quarterfinals of the Nedbank Cup at Goble Park on Sunday at 3pm. Stars are the only side to have beaten high-riding Santos in the Absa Premiership this year.
Two ATMs, one in Boksburg North and one in Brakpan, were bombed early on Thursday morning by gangs of about 20 people, Gauteng police said. Brakpan police spokesperson Captain Petros Mabuza said an ATM at the Dalview Shell garage was blown up after about 20 people held up garage staff at about 1.30am on Thursday.
For someone who’s on top of the world, Trevor Immelman has lately spent a lot of time looking up. One day after becoming the Masters champion, Immelman was courtside at Madison Square Garden for the Boston Celtics’ 99-93 victory over the New York Knicks.
Resource counters were buoyed by higher commodity prices on Tuesday, which continued to keep the JSE firm by midday trade. By 11.56am, the JSE’s broader all-share index had lifted 0,64%. The platinum-mining index advanced 2,41%, resources collected 1,26% and the gold-mining index was up 0,55%.
The unpredictable Moroka Swallows were flying high after delivering a crushing blow to Ajax Cape Town’s Premier Soccer League title aspirations with a come-from-behind 2-1 victory on Sunday. In other matches, Sundowns beat Chiefs 1-0; Celtic and Leopards drew 2-2; and AmaZulu and Platinum Stars drew 0-0.
Mamelodi Sundowns and Kaizer Chiefs face up for a repeat of their recent pulsating Nedbank Cup clash in a Premier Soccer League game at Loftus Versfeld on Sunday afternoon. While it might not be of great significance in the PSL championship race, the match-up is certain to be the big crowd-puller of the weekend.
South African Reserve Bank Governor Tito Mboweni has raised the repo rate, at which the South African Reserve Bank lends money to banks, by 50 basis points to 11,5% following a two-day meeting of the bank’s monetary policy committee. The prime overdraft rate therefore increases to 15%.
The JSE remained quiet by midday on Thursday as investors waited anxiously for the local monetary policy committee’s (MPC) rate decision at about 3pm. The consensus is for an unchanged repo rate at 11%, according to a survey of leading economists.
Talk of China’s interest in a stake in BHP Billiton has sent the resources index northward and, in turn, helped the JSE advance further by midday on Wednesday. Dow Jones newswires said that the <i>Australian</i> reported in its Wednesday edition China is in the early stages of planning to buy a stake in miner BHP Billiton.
Resources continued to gain momentum from the morning trade session, driving the JSE further into positive territory by midday on Monday. By noon the JSE’s broader all-share index had advanced 1,72% as resources were up 2,92%. The platinum-mining index climbed 0,94% while the gold-mining index edged up 0,04%.
Resource heavyweights Anglo American and BHP Billiton — which make up a substantial portion of the JSE — helped the bourse extend its gains by midday on Friday, traders said. By noon, the JSE’s broader all-share index had lifted 1,21%. Resources collected 1,83%, and the platinum mining index was up 0,8%, but the gold mining index decreased 1,34%.
Strong closes on Wall Street overnight and on Asian markets on Wednesday morning, led by financial stocks, have inspired similar local counters to extend earlier gains. By noon on Wednesday, the JSE’s broader all-share index had gained 1,14%, as banks advanced 3,4%.
After all the endless mediocre, soulless PSL games played in front of near-empty stadiums, Mamelodi Sundowns’ penalty shoot-out victory over rivals Kaizer Chiefs in the Nedbank Cup at King’s Park in Durban on Sunday evening provided high drama and exceptional entertainment.
Bamuza Sono, son of Jomo Sono and owner and coach of Jomo Cosmos FC, missed a penalty and Nathi Lions Luyanda Nxumalo scored the final spot kick to book a place in the quarterfinals of the Nedbank Cup for the national first division outfit. Lions won 5-3 in the shoot-out after the game ended goalless after 120 minutes.
AmaZulu repeated their high-scoring Nedbank Cup form by beating Vasco da Gama 5-0 at the Chatsworth Stadium in Durban on Saturday night to qualify for the quarterfinals. The Cape team made too many elementary errors and barely created a single chance for themselves.
In February this year Santos beat Moroka Swallows 4-1 in an Absa Premiership league game, and on Friday night the Cape side transformed their fine league form in to an emphatic 3-1 Nedbank Cup tournament win against the same opponents at the Germiston Stadium on Friday night.
The increase in South Africa’s consumer price index excluding mortgage rate changes (CPIX) for metro and other areas, which is used by the South African Reserve Bank for its inflation target, was 9,4% year-on-year in February from 8,8% in January. The key drivers were higher food and petrol prices.
As it did at last week’s national track and field championships, the notorious Cape Doctor had the final say in the outcome of the 56km Two Oceans ultra-marathon in Cape Town on Saturday. At times on the southern part of the course the south-easter wind gusted at more than 40km/h.
Heavyweight counters on the JSE’s resource and mining indices pulled back sharply on Thursday morning, as commodity prices started to lose ground, traders said. The slump in commodity prices forced the JSE’s broader all-share index to pull back 3,23% by noon.
The JSE remained in the black by noon on Wednesday, with a trader explaining that the United States Federal Reserve’s rate cut was adding buoyancy to the market. "The Fed’s rate decision, which saw rates decline from 3% to 2,25%, is still adding buoyancy to the JSE," he said.
Moroka Swallows coach Ian Gorowa says his team will not take their Nedbank Cup last-32 clash against National First Division side the African Warriors lightly. The two clubs meet on Wednesday after their game was postponed due to rain on Saturday. ”We’re definitely not going to take this game easy,” Gorowa said.