Star 2024-03-01

THE NATIONAL Treasury has warned of a “tough challenge” required to address all the outstanding action items required by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) to remove South Africa from what is referred to as the “Grey List”. This comes after the February 2024 FATF Plenary adopted a report by the Joint Group, which confirmed that only five of the 22 action items have been “addressed or largely addressed”. The FATF grey-listed South Africa exactly a year ago as it was deemed insufficiently compliant in being able to prevent money laundering, terrorist financing and proliferation financing. South Africa is a full member of the FATF, an inter-governmental organisation charged with developing policies and setting international standards to combat money laundering and terrorism financing. Before being placed on the Grey List,…

Several companies are on the back foot in the face of plummeting prices of PGMs IMPALA Platinum (Implats) could halt operations at some of its South African platinum mining shafts if turnaround efforts falter in the face of plummeting prices of the metal. This as the industry has already announced a recent spate of job cuts at rival operators such as Sibanye-Stillwater and Anglo American Platinum (Amplats). Implats also operates in Zimbabwe and Canada, but it is the South African operations that have been in sharp focus, especially after the company presided over a fall in profitability over the interim period to the end of December despite higher production and sales. Implats is investing in Zimbabwe replacement capacity, but CEO Nico Muller said yesterday that some of the South African…

CONSULTING engineers' confidence in the construction sector rose above 80% in 2023, possibly signalling better times for the industry. Speaking at MDA Construction and Technology Attorneys’ annual Collective Wisdom conference, Elsie Snyman, the CEO of Industry Insight, presenting an outlook of the sector, yesterday said that while the improved sentiment was off a low base of 50% surveyed for 2022 and 2021, consulting engineers’ satisfaction with the state of the industry was a litmus test for the broader infrastructure and development landscape. Snyman noted that consulting engineers had more work in 2023, with civil contractors and architects expressing positive views, too. “We see better perceptions of the industry. Perhaps it can be attributed to the increased planning in economic infrastructure. “There is also much discussion about infrastructure and development investment.…

SHAREHOLDERS of African Equity Empowerment Investments (AEEI) voted overwhelmingly in favour of a scheme of arrangement and for the company to be delisted from the JSE. With more than two-decades of being listed on the JSE, the firm – which listed on May 3, 1999, and is a majority black-owned and black-controlled investment holding company – has finally called it a day. At Wednesday’s shareholder meeting, 99.63% of shareholders voted in favour of the resolution to delist. The scheme of arrangement involves shares held by shareholders being repurchased for R1.15 per share cash. AEEI has said previously its decision to delist was prompted by the unbundling of its investment in AYO Technology Solutions and the sale of a 30% stake in British Telecom South Africa by AEEI subsidiary Kilomix, and…

PRICES for final manufactured goods are expected to remain elevated in the next coming months as a result of impending fuel price hikes before moderating as the volume of products increases in various fresh produce markets. Statistics South Africa (StatsSA) said yesterday that the annual producer price inflation (PPI) quickened to 4.7% in January, up from 4% in December, following a two-month downswing. StatsSA said the main contributors to the headline PPI annual inflation rate were food products, beverages and tobacco products; metals, machinery, equipment and computing equipment; coke, petroleum, chemical, rubber and plastic products; and transport equipment. Inflation for food, beverages and tobacco products continued to ease off a high base, moderating to 4%, its lowest level since August 2020 from 4.6% in December. Prices of transport equipment rose…

SANTAM lifted its final dividend 7% to 905 cents in the year to December 31 after insurance revenue increased 9% and higher interest rates helped investment returns. Basic earnings a share were up 65% to 2 973c and headline earnings a share increased by 27% to 2 310c. Chief risk officer Charisse Ras said yesterday that the conventional insurance net underwriting margin fell to 3.5% from 5.1% after being impacted by floods in the Western Cape, hailstorms in Gauteng, the earthquake in Türkiye, and fires throughout the country, which negatively impacted the profitability of the property class of business. She said in an online interview that there were fewer fires than the year before, but the value of them was higher, while the R150 million exposure…