Star 2024-04-04

CHOOSING stocks based on social media tips might generate big returns in the short term, but not in the longer run, and the influence of such tips raises concerns over investor protection and keeping markets orderly, the EU’s securities watchdog said yesterday. The power of social media in hyping up trading was seen in January 2021 when “meme stock” GameStop surged as much as 1 600% on Wall Street as amateur investors piled into the video game retailer’s shares. EU Finance Ministers are keen to attract more retail investors to help deepen the bloc’s capital market, but do not want market vola- tility such as that involved in speculative trading in GameStop to tarnish investing. The European Securities and Markets Authority (Esma) said in its first risk analysis on…

GLOBAL logistics giant DP World is acquiring key assets of bp Southern Africa’s (bpSA) secondary transport operations, marking a significant expansion of its business in South Africa. International energy group bp has operated in Africa for more than 100 years – with operations from explor- ation to refining and fuel product distri- bution. In South Africa, it is one of few major industry players still running its own transport operations. The value of the transaction was not disclosed, a DP World spokesperson said yesterday. UAE-based global logistics group DP World, which has staff in 74 countries on six continents, acquired South Africa-based Imperial Logistics, effective in 2022. In the year to December 31, 2023, DP World lifted revenue 6.6% to $18.25 billion (R344bn) and adjusted earnings before interest, tax,…

Part of TNPA’s multi-billion rand expenditure on critical infrastructure upgrades TRANSNET National Ports Authority (TNPA) has awarded a R60 million contract to a local joint venture to construct and operate the first-ever solar-powered, seawater desalination plant at the Port of East London. This is part of TNPA’s multi-billion rand expenditure on critical infrastructure upgrades over the next few years, which include a desalination plant project to enable the ports operator to minimise dependency on external parties to provide water to the port system. The move comes at a time when South Africa faces a deteriorating water infrastructure, which has led to parts of the country being water-shedded. TNPA yesterday appointed a joint venture – Norland Civil Engineers & Contractors and Impact Water Solutions, trading as Sun Water East London…

THE INTERNATIONAL Monetary Fund (IMF) has cautioned that the economic scarring of the Covid-19 pandemic, geopolitical tensions, and the tightening of financial conditions have hit low-income countries, mainly in Africa, the hardest in recent years. The IMF defines low-income countries as the 69 countries eligible for the Poverty Reduction and Growth Trust facilities. IMF managing director Kristalina Georgieva said yesterday that though the outlook for low-income countries was gradually improving, they were still facing persistent macroeconomic vulnerabilities, including liquidity challenges due to high debt service. Speaking during a joint high-level event with the World Bank, Georgieva said there was significant heterogeneity among low-income countries. She said the poorest and most fragile countries had faced deep scarring from the pandemic, while those with diversified economies and frontier markets were faring better.…

THE COMPANIES and Intellectual Property Commission (CIPC) said yesterday it was still resolving the challenges where some of its customers were unable to access its online portal and would introduce measures to minimise the impact in the next few weeks. Business Report has learnt that some CIPC customers were unable to access/log into the commission’s system to access its services online. Some said they have been experiencing this for about a month now. The issue arose after the CIPC’s database was hacked last month with sensitive data of at least three million entities and individuals compromised. At the time, as soon as the CIPC’s ICT technicians were alerted to a possible security compromise, certain CIPC systems were shut down immediately. Lungile Dukwana, the chief strategy executive at the commission, which…

AS THE GLOBAL stage prepares to witness the inaugural BRICS Simulation Conference, set against the backdrop of Cape Town, anticipation is rife among the 200-strong international delegation. Scheduled to unfold over five transformative days beginning on April 18, 2024, this conference promises to be a watershed moment in the realm of multinational collaboration and economic strategy. At the heart of this gathering lies a pivotal theme: “BRICS Unleashed – the Impact of BRICS on Industries and Shaping Monetary Policy”. This topic aims to provide entrepreneurs with a roadmap to success in international business and innovation while leveraging the industrial strengths and supply capabilities of BRICS. Reflecting on the genesis of BRICS, in 2021, economist Jim O’Neill prophetically envisioned that this trade unit would dominate the global eco- nomy by 2050.…