Star 2021-06-02

EDWARD WEST edward.west@inl.co.za ALEXANDER Forbes said profit from continuing operations (before non-trading and capital items) for the 12 months to March 31 was expected to be 5 to 15 percent lower than in the same period last year after earnings were impacted by an unexpected liability from a previously sold UK subsidiary. The integrated financial services, insurance and investment group’s profit from continuing operations of R643 million to R719m reflected “resilience in operating income, coupled with good expense management”, the group said in a trading statement yesterday. However, despite meaningful progress made through focused cost containment, the growth in expenses year-on-year continued to be impacted by the reduced earnings base resulting from the sale of the short-term insurance business in the prior year. Attributable earnings were also…

Siphelele Dludla siphelele.dludla@inl.co.za PARLIAMENT has resolved to institute an inquiry into allegations of corruption, fraud and maladministration at the Development Bank of Southern Africa (DBSA), which the development finance institution has denied. However, the DBSA yesterday failed to convince the Standing Committee on Public Accounts (Scopa) that various loans amounting to R426 million to Cranbrook Property Projects were above board. Scopa chairperson Mkhuleko Hlengwa said the committee would rope in the office of the auditor-general and the Special Investigating Unit in this matter. Hlengwa said that the responses and explanations from the DBSA did not assist the committee with the information it required. “Scopa will now start the process of instituting an inquiry into the DBSA,” Hengwa said. “The committee will consult Parliament Legal Services on the process to…

Joblessness rate is at a record-high 43.2%, according to the expanded definition of unemployment Siphelele Dludla siphelele.dludla@inl.co.za THE COVID-19 pandemic continued to wreak havoc on the South African economy as the unemployment rate rose to a 13-year high in the first quarter, threatening the predicted economic recovery. Data from Statistics South Africa (StatsSA) yesterday showed that 8 000 more people joined the ranks of the unemployed between January and March. The official unemployment rate now stands at 32.6 percent, as 7.2 million people are without jobs, mainly the youth aged between 15 and 34. StatsSA said the unemployment rate ticked up slightly by 0.1 of a percentage point in the first quarter of this year, from 32.5 percent in the fourth quarter of last year. This was the highest unemployment…

The RAND LOST steam yesterday and retreated 4c to R13.76 against a softer dollar yesterday by 5pm as data showed that South Africa’s unemployment rate hit a new record 13-year high in the first quarter, having touched a near 2-year high of R13.69 earlier in the day. Risk appetite continued to bolster the local unit, despite a looming third wave of Covid-19 infections and level 2 lockdown restrictions. Bianca Botes, a director at Citadel Global, said the rand had shrugged off last week’s negative reviews by ratings agencies as it continued to strengthen on Monday and yesterday.The dollar softened yesterday, edging toward five-month lows. The dollar index was down 0.124 percent at 89.68, having risen as high as 90.447 on Friday, when a measure of US inflation closely watched…

PACKAGING and paper company Mondi said yesterday that it had completed the acquisition of leading Turkish corrugated packaging player Olmuksan as it grows its international footprint. Mondi chief executive Andrew King said: “We are delighted to have completed this acquisition, which significantly strengthens our position in the fast-growing Turkish corrugated market and expands our offering to existing and new customers in the region. We look forward to welcoming the Olmuksan team to Mondi.” Further to the announcement made on January 5, Mondi said all conditions had been satisfied and it had completed the acquisition of 90.38 percent of the outstanding shares in Olmuksan International Paper Ambalaj Sanayi ve Ticaret from International Paper for a total consideration of €66 million (R1.1 billion). The implied enterprise value on a…

THE SOUTH African Reserve Bank (SARB) plans to exit African Bank Holdings Limited (ABHL) and said yesterday that it had published a request for formal expressions of interest from both local and international parties. The time had come to review potential exit options and for ABHL to obtain a long-term sustainable shareholder or shareholders who were better aligned to the bank’s strategy and growth aspirations, the Reserve Bank said. The SARB acquired its 50 percent shareholding in ABHL in 2016 as part of the restructuring of African Bank Limited, renamed Residual Debt Services Limited, after it was placed under curatorship. “As a shareholder, the SARB provided a capital injection to assist in financing ABHL’s operations. It was never the intention of the SARB to hold this equity stake indefinitely,…