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Edward West edward.west@inl.co.za EVERGRANDE, a big debt-saddled property developer in China, the banning of cryptocurrency transactions and growing power cuts in the world’s second biggest economy are causing jitters in international markets, analysts said yesterday. Evergrande warned last week it could not meet interest repayments on its $300 billion (R4.5 trillion) debt. Meanwhile, on Friday, China’s central bank announced all transactions and mining of crypto-currencies were illegal – the country is one of the world’s largest cryptocurrency markets and the Bitcoin price slid by more than $2 000 on Friday after the announcement. The Bitcoin price was trading 1 percent higher at $43 642.60 yesterday afternoon. Also on Friday there were reports that power rationing and forced halts to factory production in…
Siphelele Dludla siphelele.dludla@inl.co.za AS SOUTH Africa celebrated World Tourism Day yesterday, local pundits have begun to be optimistic about the sector’s prospects as the country officially “exited” the third wave of Covid-19 pandemic. The tourism sector is without a doubt one of the industries that has been hardest hit by the Covid-19 pandemic for a long and devastating 18 months. The Bureau for Economic Research (BER) yesterday said tourist accommodation statistics had been showing a gradual recovery since February, but the headwinds caused by lockdown restrictions and civil unrest had a severe impact on the hospitality industry. However, hope rose on Sunday when the National Institute of Communicable Diseases announced that South Africa had officially exited its third wave of Covid-19 infections, with the number of fully vaccinated people approaching…
Edward West edward.west@inl.co.za THE MULTIPURPOSE Reactor (MPR) to succeed the Safari-1 nuclear reactor at Pelindaba will secure South Africa’s position as one of the top four producers of radioisotopes in the world and further nuclear technology research in the country. This was according to South African Nuclear Energy Corporation (Necsa) board chairperson David Nicholls, who yesterday in a statement welcomed Cabinet’s approval of the MPR reactor. There are 12 nuclear research reactors in Africa. The Safari-1 reactor near Pretoria, a 20MW light water-cooled research reactor, went critical on March 18, 1965. Nicholls said some 5 000 direct and 26 000 indirect jobs would be created during construction of the MPR. The tentative date of start of construction is 2025. It would provide employment to about 750 full-time employees…
Siphelele Dludla siphelele.dludla@inl.co.za THE RAND opened the week on a backfoot yesterday as it weakened to a one-month low, tracking above R15 to the dollar, its weakest level in a month battered by seismic events in China, the looming US tapering and rising oil prices. Investors have been worried about a halt in China’s economic growth and state authoritarianism, heightening regulatory restrictions on consumer and tech businesses. Oil prices rose for a fifth straight day yesterday with Brent heading for $80 (R1 193) a barrel, with forecasts indicating it could reach $90 a barrel by year-end, amid supply concerns as demand picks up. On these concerns, the rand weakened to touch R15.08 to the dollar earlier in the day, but pulled back to R14.97 by 5pm. FXTM’s senior research analyst…
Shivani Singh and Min Zhang WIDENING power shortages in China have halted production at numerous factories, including many supplying Apple and Tesla, while some shops in the north east operated by candlelight and malls shut earlier as the economic toll of the squeeze mounted. Rationing has been implemented during peak hours in many parts of north-eastern China since last week, and residents of cities, including Changchun, said cuts were occurring sooner and lasting for longer, state media reported. Yesterday, State Grid Corporation pledged to ensure basic power supply and avoid electricity cuts. China’s power crunch, caused by tight coal supplies and toughening emissions standards, has hurt production in industries across several regions and is dragging on the country’s economic growth outlook, analysts said. The power squeeze is unnerving Chinese…
Dineo Faku dineo.faku@inl.co.za MULTI-national diversified technology group 4Sight Holdings, which re-domi- ciled its operations from Mauritius to South Africa at the beginning of the year, surged by 14 percent on the JSE as the group recorded a 16.9 percent revenue growth during the six months ended June 2021. Later in the day the share closed 4.76 percent higher at R0.22 on the JSE yesterday 4Sight said the 16.9 percent in- crease in revenue to R291.1 million compared with the R249.1m in the same period in 2020 demonstrated the strength of the diversified growth profile. It said key initiatives included implementing an account-based marketing strategy with an intentional approach in identifying and engaging with the top tier accounts using personalised buying experiences. The group also segmented…
