A lack of jobs in the Eastern Cape, South Africa, led Thoko Njemla, 51,a former receptionist to take up beekeeping 15 years ago. Today she employs five people from her village and harvests tonnes of honey every year. Njemla lives in a small village called Ndungwana just a few kilometres from Mthatha. She left her […]

A 2010 presidential project intended to house shack dwellers in the south of Johannesburg is mired in corruption and wholesale land theft, with hundreds of residents cheated out of houses they paid for… writes CIARAN RYAN. Those who have attempted to get to the bottom of the theft have been threatened and, in one case, […]

In a country in which wine making is still predominantly a white, largely male profession, South Africa’s first black woman winemaker, Ntsiki Biyela, is a pioneer: her latest achievement, the creation of her own brand, Aslina. Biyela is no novice to wine making, having brought accolades to red wine producer Stellekaya for the past 13 […]

LONDON (Reuters) – Moody’s is likely to make key rating calls on Britain, China and South Africa among others this year as rising political risk and debt levels push the number of countries on a downgrade warning back to a record high. From Europe’s Brexit strains and looming elections to the battles of China, South […]

The South African Revenue Service (SARS) has warned taxpayers and corporate organisations to be on the lookout for scams and fraudulent activities over the festive period. “The South African Revenue Service has noted several scams, including the issuing of fake third party appointment (AA88) notices to companies, the unauthorised use of its logo as well […]

Trade and Industry Minister Rob Davies has welcomed the R150-million Chinese investment at the Dube Trade Port which will build local capacity in the manufacturing of fibre optic cables and generate employment opportunities for locals. Yangtze Optics Africa Cable  is a R150-million investment to set up and operate a modern optical fibre cable manufacturing plant […]

The Chancellor of the Exchequer, Philip Hammond, is in South Africa on a two-day visit to showcase the UK’s commitment to forming even stronger global ties with SA… as the UK prepares to leave the EU. The Chancellor said: “As we leave the EU, Britain’s future prosperity depends on maintaining the strongest possible economic links with our European neighbours, […]

There’s a new building in town – and it’s impossible to ignore. Shiny, shimmering, sexy and super-cool – South Africans are going crazy over the new Sasol global headquarters in Sandton, Johannesburg. According to Betapoint, Sasol’s strategic real estate advisory and implementation partner, the 67,000 square meter development consolidates Sasol’s previous 11 properties, which were spread […]

The whole economically-aware population of South Africa is celebrating that the three main ratings agencies held off on junking the country’s financial reputation in the past two weeks. I am celebrating too. But a closer look is needed. The statement by Standard & Poors – more strict than Fitch and Moody’s – lacked logic and […]

South Africa braced itself for the worst, with the Rand weakening against the dollar this morning in anticipation of Standard and Poor’s (S&P’s) rating… BUT junk status has been averted! The global ratings service has instead maintained an investment grade sovereign credit rating, with a negative outlook, for South Africa. The Democratic Alliance (DA) welcomed the […]

Standard and Poor’s (S&P) is expected to announce its rating decision with regards to South Africa’s economy today. In the meantime, the Rand has weakened at the prospect of the country being downgraded to ‘junk’ status for the first time since 2000. S&P currently rates South Africa one notch above junk status. The rating agency’s […]

Nine copper thieves were arrested in one week as part of Eskom’s fight against electricity theft. In a statement on Wednesday, the power utility said the fight against electricity theft, particularly cable or copper theft, continues to show progress. The arrests took place in the Western Cape, KwaZulu-Natal and in Mpumalanga. The equipment that was […]

PRETORIA – Moody’s Investors Service (Moody’s) announced that is has left South Africa’s government bond long and short term ratings of ‘Baa2/P-2’ unchanged with a negative outlook, two notches above sub-investment grade. There had been concern that Moody’s would downgrade South Africa to junk status which would increase borrowing costs and put foreign investors off. The South […]

Fitch ratings agency has affirmed South Africa’s credit rating at BBB- (a notch above sub-investment), but dropped the outlook from Stable to Negative. The government welcomed the news of the investment status being maintained, saying it “demonstrates the resilience of the country and its people” who had worked hard together to avert a downgrade to […]

JOHANNESBURG – The Gupta Family has released a statement, through APO, regarding radio presenter and journalist Stephen Grootes’ allegation that “Ajay Gupta Lied”. In an article on EWN yesterday, Grootes described how he had been invited in February to conduct an interview at Saxonwold with the head of the Gupta Family, Ajay… which he was then not […]

Johannesburg is set to be the most popular destination city in Africa for the fourth year, according to the 2016 Mastercard Global Destinations Cities Index. The city is expected to welcome 3.6 million international overnight visitors in 2016, a 6.2% increase on last year’s 3.39 million visitors. Cairo in Egypt is the second most visited […]

South Africa was named the winner of the annual Outsourcing Destination of the Year title at the annual Global Sourcing Association (GSA) awards ceremony in the UK last night. South Africa’s Trade and Industry Minister Rob Davies hailed the win of the prestigious Global Sourcing Association (GSA) award, saying: “This award cements South Africa’s investment position and further presents a […]

South Africans have taken to social media to support former Public Protector (PP) Thuli Madonsela after the President lashed out at her for a speech given in Stellenbosch yesterday, labelling it “unbecoming” and accusing her of “leaking” audio recordings of her discussions with President Jacob Zuma. The Presidency said on Friday that it was concerned by “continuing […]

JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) – Africa’s biggest pension fund, Public Investment Corporation, has sought approval from South Africa’s central bank to raise its stake in Barclays Africa <BGAJ.J>, two sources with direct knowledge of the matter said. Barclays Africa’s parent, Barclays Plc <BARC.L>, wants to reduce its holding to below 20 percent, which would make it an […]

As the roof of Jacob Zuma’s presidency begins to cave in, there is the suggestion that, to save South Africa and the continuing damage that his incumbency is doing to the economy, he should be given amnesty. It would seem this is meant to give Zuma a cast iron assurance that the charges pertaining to […]

The march/marches tomorrow, 2 November, in Tshwane will go ahead despite charges against Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan being dropped. The DA, EFF and Save South Africa have all confirmed their commitment. All three marches begin at different venues with EFF in red, DA in blue and Save SA in colours of the national flag. Economic […]

LONDON (Reuters) – Britain on Tuesday gave Heathrow Airport the green light to build a new $22 billion (18 billion pounds) runway, ending 25 years of indecision with the most ambitious option available to boost global trade links following the vote to leave the EU. Heathrow, Europe’s busiest airport, had been battling with its smaller […]

BERLIN/HONG KONG (Reuters) – As Europe’s fashion giants brace for what could be the toughest leg of their expansion in China, a South African retail tycoon has launched a bold assault on the world’s most populous nation. Christo Wiese is promising to open 500 of his New Look stores in just three years, catapulting the […]

Cape Town’s skyline is set to transform over the next few years with proposed luxury hotels and a skyscraper that’ll boast breathtaking 360 degree views over South Africa’s – and one of the world’s – favourite holiday destinations. According to Pam Golding Properties, there is an unprecedented surge in property investments in Cape Town’s CBD (central business district), with projects valued […]

Ooh la la, the French love our wine! So says CNN. In fact the Chinese are also developing a taste for South African wine, and British billionaire Richard Branson is investing in our vineyards. So too is an Indian businessman and an American company. We’ll drink to that! In an article entitled Why the French want in […]