Staff Reporter

THE Reserve Bank said higher corporate deposits and corporate demand for credit have driven September’s money supply and credit growth figures higher than expected. M3 money supply has increased at an annual rate of 7,77% compared to August’s 5,27%. The central bank said the figure is within its guideline range of 6 to 10%. Private-sector […]

EMBATTLED people’s poet Mzwakhe Mbuli briefly appeared in the Randburg Regional Court on Thursday morning. It is alleged he shot a security guard at the Bank of Lisbon in Randburg in 1997 and robbed him of R230000. The case has been remanded until February 9. Mbuli and two co-accused were found guilty in March of […]

OWN CORRESPONDENT, Johannesburg | Sunday 11.15am. SCIENTISTS have heavily criticised President Thabo Mbeki for claiming that the internationally-used anti-AIDS drug AZT is dangerous to health. Defending his government’s refusal to sanction the drug’s use to combat South Africa’s spiralling AIDS problem, Mbeki told the lower house of parliament this week that it would be “irresponsible” […]

OWN CORRESPONDENT, LUSAKA | Sunday 8.30pm. PRESIDENT Thabo Mbeki wound-up a two-day state visit to Zambia with a promise to address Zambian complaints over terms of trade. Mbeki told a meeting with the business community in Zambia, however, that perceived imbalances were largely a result of the relative weakness of other economies in the region. […]

Former South African leader Nelson Mandela has claimed the backing of key Arab leaders for a three-point Middle East peace plan.

A NEW forum, consisting of the presidency, provincial premiers and the minister for provincial and local government, is to be established and will meet six times a year, President Thabo Mbeki said on Thursday. He said in a speech to the National Council of Provinces that the decision to establish the new forum was taken […]

OWN CORRESPONDENT, Vosloorus | Saturday 7.00pm. AMAGLUG-GLUG, South Africa’s under-23 soccer team, finished strongly to defeat Guinea 3-1 at Vooloorus Stadium in an Olympic Games qualifying match on Saturday. Siyabonga Nomvete scored twice and Daniel Matsau once for the home team, who led 1-0 at half-time, and Sambegou Bangoura was on target for the West […]

WESTERN Province’s woeful season continued as they slumped to a 10-wicket defeat against KwaZulu-Natal in the four-day SuperSport Series match at Newlands on Sunday. Having been dismissed an hour before tea for 260 in their second innings on the final day, the hosts had the impossible task of defending 31 runs. The visitors rattled off […]

TELFORD VICE, Bloemfontein | Sunday 7.00pm ZIMBABWE ended the third day of the first test against South Africa still 102 runs short of making the home side bat again with five wickets already down. The tourists reached 123-5 in their second innings at the close, needing 225 to avoid an innings defeat. Zimbabwe were dismissed […]

PRESIDENT Thabo Mbeki says the Springboks were the best in a letter wishing the team well in their World Cup semi-final clash against the Wallabies. “I am convinced you are world champions,” Mbeki wrote in a letter addressed to captain Joost van der Westhuizen. “The whole world looks up to you as such.” Mbeki added: […]

SOLID batting, superb bowling and the news that Makhaya Ntini was a free man conspired to help Border take command of their Supersport Series match against Griqualand West at Buffalo Park on Friday. After the news had filtered through that Ntini had won his appeal against a rape conviction, Border celebrated by piling up a […]

OWN CORRESPONDENT, London | Saturday 9.00am. NEW Zealand, who missed out so narrowly four years ago, believe it is their destiny to win the World Cup this time around. The All Blacks, who face France in the second semi-final at Twickenham on Sunday, face a French side who have the unenviable task of testing out […]

OWN CORRESPONDENT, London | Saturday 12.00pm. THE Springboks have built up an unstoppable momentum four years ago that propelled them to victory in the World Cup. Skipper Joost van der Westhuizen says he senses a similar momentum building among the current side. The Springboks face southern hemisphere rivals Australia in the first semi-final at Twickenham […]

AUSTRALIA were listed at 4-7 favourites by bookmakers William Hill on Thursday to beat defending champions South Africa in their World Cup semifinal at Twickenham on Saturday. South Africa were quoted at 11-8 with a draw at 18-1. New Zealand are still tipped to win.

TELFORD VICE, Bloemfontein | Friday 7.30pm Zimbabwe 292. South Africa 29-0 DIFFICULT as it may be to believe, Shaun Pollock found a downside to taking his 10th five-wicket haul in Test cricket against Zimbabwe at Springbok Park on Friday. His father, Peter, enjoyed nine such golden days during his 28 Test matches. Shaun is playing […]

NATIONAL cricketer Makhaya Ntini is a free man after winning his appeal against a six year sentence for rape on Friday morning, because the state had not proved beyond a reasonable doubt that he was guilty, the judge said.

ALL Black kicking machine Andrew Mehrtens will start for New Zealand in their Rugby World Cup semi-final against France on Sunday, New Zealand media reported. Mehrtens had been in doubt since damaging his left knee at the bottom of a ruck during the All Blacks’ 30-18 quarter-final win over Scotland last weekend. But Mehrtens’ knee […]

KWAZULU-NATAL dominated the second day’s play of the four-day SuperSport Series match against Western Province at Newlands on Friday, thanks to a solid 135-run partnership from skipper Dale Benkenstein and Errol Stewart. The two took the score from 129 for three to 264 before Benkenstein was excellently caught at third-man by Ryan Joffe for 71. […]

VETERAN Wallaby centre Tim Horan is in doubt for Saturday’s World Cup semi-final against South Africa at Twickenham after being laid low by a stomach virus. Horan was up all night with nausea and stayed at the team hotel to recuperate while the rest of the team trained on Friday morning. Team doctor John Best […]

BILL BARCLAY, London | Friday 9.00am. WORLD Champions South Africa and Australia will provide two very different versions of southern hemisphere rugby at Twickenham this Saturday when they battle for a place in the World Cup final. The contrast in style of the two sides is encapsulated in the fly-half contest between South Africa’s Jannie […]

YOUNG twenty-somethings James Bryant and Justin Kemp both bettered their own first class bests as Eastern Province took control of their Supersport Series match against Easterns at St Georges Park on Friday. At the close, the hosts had reached 344 for six — an overall lead of 60 — with Kemp still unbeaten at the […]

WESTERN Province slumped to 222 all-out on the first day of their four-day SuperSport Series match against KwaZulu-Natal at Newlands on Thursday. Winning the toss and electing to bat the hosts were reduced to 74 for four by the first over after lunch with experienced campaigners Lloyd Ferreira, Brian McMillan, HD Ackerman and John Commins […]

Reg Rumney and Janet Wilhelm offer tips gleaned from research for their book, Movers &Shakers: An A-Z of South African Business People What makes a “captain of industry”? Our encounters with the top people in business suggest that touching 2m tall would help. The heads of our major corporations often tower over lesser mortals, like […]

Economists say the recent spate of liquidations are a sign that an 18-month recession is over. Donna Block and Mungo Soggot report The gold price has slumped below $300 again, there is a spate of liquidations and world markets are jittery – but economists remain bullish about South Africa’s growth prospects next year. The liquidations, […]

Mirjam Asmal takes umbrage at Brenda Atkinson’s review of towards-transit: new visual languages in South Africa, a recent exhibition in Zurich Out of anxiety for aesthetic, political or cultural ghettoisation, South African art critics seem to escape into shouting “colonial misappropriation”, “voyeurism” or “European gaze” instead of facing the challenge of an international art discourse. […]

OWN CORRESPONDENT, London | Thursday 5.15pm. AUSTRALIAN captain John Eales is playing down the threat posed by Springbok fly-half Jannie De Beer ahead of the crunch World Cup semi-final between the Wallabies and the Springboks at Twickenham on Saturday. The Australian squad have spent the past 48 hours studying videos of South Africa’s quarter-final victory […]

Shaun Harris South Africans’ relatively new, partial freedom to invest offshore has been warmly welcomed this year, providing a growing flow of business for financial consultants and global unit trust management companies. Increased investor knowledge and sophistication here now closely follow the wisdom that a long-term, low-risk portfolio must be well diversified, and that means […]

>From Paul Simon’s Graceland to the Rugby World Cup, Ladysmith Black Mambazo has brought traditional a cappella to the rest of the world, writes Lucy O’Brien ‘You can buy the biggest house in America, but it’s not home. Where the mother lives – that is home,” says Joseph Shabalala, leader of Ladysmith Black Mambazo. He […]

finals? Andy Capostagno in London Rugby World Cup Francois Pienaar and Nick Farr Jones were very insistent. “Don’t write off France,” they said. “They may be a shambles at the moment, but they have a habit of getting it right when it matters.” They didn’t say that this week, they said it three months ago […]

SEVERAL mourners were reportedly injured on Sunday while fleeing from the grave of Tanzanian leader Julius Nyerere after hearing a spooky voice in the vicinity. Villagers said the voice was that of Muhunda, a well-known spirit among Nyerere’s Zanaki tribe, who has the capability of transforming into the image of any living being. Nyerere’s nephew, […]

Cameron Duodu LETTER FROM THE NORTH There is a hidden agenda behind the defiant decision of the governor of Zamfara state, in northern Nigeria, Ahmad Sani, to introduce Sharia law into his state with effect from October 27. Nigeria is split almost equally between Muslims and Christians, and to have laws based on one religion […]

Thirty years ago the world as we know it changed. Simon Jeffery looks at the communication revolution that became the Internet 1958: Dwight D Eisenhower creates the Advanced Research Projects Agency (Arpa) to further American military science after the Soviet Union launches Sputnik. 1962: Arpa works on computer technology. Head scientist Dr JCR Licklider sees […]