Star 2024-04-02

BAT SOUTH Africa (Batsa) said on Friday that it has been forced to scale down its direct retail product distribution and delivery operations, as its sales volumes continue to decline due to the heightened illicit trade in a blow to local jobs. Johnny Moloto, the Area Head of Corporate and Regulatory Affairs for BAT Sub-Saharan Africa, said their estimates showed that illicit trade now accounted for more than 70% of all cigarettes consumed in the country, leaving the legal market with less than a 30% market share. “For a long time, Batsa has been reluctant to scale down distribution operations in view of the impact on our integrated supply chain. However, the business must take urgent action to enhance efficiencies, as we try to mitigate the impact of illicit trade…

South Africa recorded smaller inflows of R16.2 billion in last quarter of 2023, from R26bn SOUTH Africa recorded smaller foreign direct investment (FDI) inflows of R16.2 billion in the fourth quarter of 2023, from R26bn in the third quarter, central bank data showed last week. For 2023 as a whole, FDI fell to R96.5bn from R151bn in 2022, as equity investment by foreign parent companies in domestic companies slowed, the South African Reserve Bank’s Quarterly Bulletin showed. Economic activity in South Africa remained stagnant in the fourth quarter as real gross domestic product (GDP) expanded by only 0.1%, following a contraction of 0.2% in the third quarter. On an annual basis, GDP slowed significantly from 1.9% in 2022 to 0.6% in 2023, weighed down by energy and logistical constraints,…

GOLD HIT ANOTHER record high yesterday as investors grow confident that the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates this year, even after data showed a slight uptick in a key inflation report. The precious metal has enjoyed healthy buying interest this year as the US central bank hints at an easing of credit conditions. It hit a new high of $2 265.73 (R42 699) yesterday, according to Bloomberg News. On Friday, the closely watched personal consumption expenditures (PCE) index the Fed's preferred gauge of infla tion – showed a small on-year rise in March compared with February, though the core reading eased slightly. Federal Reserve chairperson Jerome Powell said the report was “pretty much in line with our expectations” and decision-makers were on track to hit their…

PRODUCER price inflation eased in February, Statistics South Africa data shows. In its economic insights released on Thursday, Nedbank said the PPI surprised to the upside after slowing to 4.5% in February from 4.7% in January, which was contrary to their and the market’s forecast for an acceleration to 4.9%. Statistician-General Risenga Maluleke said the producer price index (PPI) increased by 0.5% month-on-month in February. The main contributors to the headline PPI annual inflation rate were food products, beverages and tobacco products which increased by 4.3% year-on-year and contributed 1.2 percentage points; coke, petroleum, chemical, rubber and plastic products which increased by 4% year-on-year and contributed 1 percentage point; and metals, machinery, equipment and computing equipment which increased by 5.2% year-on-year while contributing 0.7 of a percentage point. The contributors…

US MANUFACTURING grew for the first time in 1½ years in March as production rebounded sharply and new orders increased, but em- ployment at factories remained subdued and prices for inputs pushed higher. The Institute for Supply Management (ISM) said yesterday, its manufacturing PMI increased to 50.3 points last month, the highest and first reading above 50 points since September 2022, from 47.8 points in February. The re- bound ended 16 straight months of contrac- tion in manufacturing, which accounts for 10.4% of the economy. That was the longest such stretch since the period from August 2000, to January 2002. A PMI reading above 50 points indicates growth in the manufacturing sector. The ISM and other factory surveys had grossly overstated the weakness in manufacturing, which has…

DR HASSEN Adams, former chairperson of SunWest and founder of Grand Parade Investment (GPI), died last Wednesday, following a long illness, at the age of 72. His funeral was held on Thursday. Adams, an engineer, has left a legacy not only of financial astuteness, but of empowering people and community involvement. Hassen held directorships in diverse industry sectors, including construction, gaming, shipping, entertainment and leisure, and had extensive experience in corporate finance. He was awarded an Honorary Doctorate in Philosophy from the Department of Economic and Management Science at the University of the Western Cape. In 1996, six people met in Cape Town to establish a truly broad-based empowerment company that could represent the diversity of marginalised communities in the Western Cape. One of them was Adams, the founder and…