Star 2025-02-06

Hopes and expectations collide as country awaits President Ramaphosa’s SONA As South Africa approaches the eagerly awaited State of the Nation Address (Sona) by President Cyril Ramaphosa, anticipation is running high among economists and citizens alike. With pressing issues such as economic recovery, unemployment, and the energy crises front and centre, analysts are hoping that Ramaphosa's address will provide crucial insights into the government's strategies aimed at revitalising the nation. Investec chief economist Annabel Bishop said that investors will be focusing on the various crisis gripping the country such as weak growth, freight constraints, poor governance at a number of state entities, particularly municipalities and the need to fight crime and corruption. "The water and sanitation crisis, still high unemployment (poverty and weak growth) and GBV (gender-based violence) will also…

Some steel sector companies have resorted to using steel billets as a stop-gap measure in the mounting shortage of long steel products, as an ominous silence hangs over the fate of ArcelorMittal South Africa (Amsa), whose January-end deadline to mothball operations in Newcastle and Vereeniging looms heavily over the industry. On the eve of Amsa releasing its financial results on Friday and possibly making a public announcement on the final decision regarding its plants, participants at a webinar hosted by XA Global Advisors discussed the potential impact of Amsa’s decision. Participants said this directly impacts the future availability of long steel products in the Southern African Customs Union. Billets and blooms are semi-rolled products used by rolling mills for manufacturing steel products such as rounds, wire, rebar, or structural sections.…

Political tensions are escalating within South Africa’s economic landscape after the cancellation of a crucial meeting between the Select Committee on Economic Development and Trade and officials from the Department of Trade, Industry and Competition (the dtic). The meeting set for Wednesday was intended for a comprehensive briefing on the sensitive issues surrounding the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) and European Union (EU) restrictions on South African citrus imports. However, the absence of key government officials painted a stark picture of the communication breakdowns that are straining relations between lawmakers and the executive branch. Sonja Boshoff, chairperson of the Select Committee on Economic Development and Trade, expressed her frustration over the no-show of the dtic minister, Parks Tau, who had apologised late for his absence due to a concurrent…

While local banks have made significant strides in black ownership and empowerment financing, they are struggling to meet key transformation targets in senior and top senior management levels, the latest Banking Association of South Africa (Basa) report says. According to Basa's 2024 Transformation in Banking Report, released on Thursday, which covers 96% of bank assets in South Africa, the banking sector has exceeded targets for black ownership and economic interest, with black ownership standing at 38% for 2023, well above the 25% target. However, despite this progress in lower levels of management, senior and top senior management remain a concern, with only 51% of senior managers and 36% of top senior managers being black, falling short of the 60% target. Of note, 90% of junior managers in banks are black,…

Total annual gold demand reached a new, record high of 4 974 tons driven by strong central bank buying and growth in investment demand, according to the World Gold Council’s latest Gold Demand Trends report. The report, released at the Investing in African Mining in Cape Town on Wednesday, said the combination of record high gold prices and volumes resulted in the highest ever total value of demand at $382 billion (R7.1 trillion). “Gold once again dominated headlines in 2024, with prices reaching 40 record highs last year. Yet, the demand trajectory of 2024 was far from linear, with central banks posting strong demand in the first quarter before moderating through the middle of the year and finishing with a strong fourth,” said Louise Street, a senior markets analyst at…

Transnet Engineering (TE), responsible for the maintenance of the utilities rolling stock and key equipment in the ports, has made headway on getting more locomotives onto the tracks and has identified three key areas of potential collaboration with the private sector. This was according to Bessie Mabunda, the acting-CEO of TE since May last year, and who was interviewed on Wednesday at the Investing in African Mining Indaba that is being held in Cape Town. Mining companies continue to struggle with Transnet’s declining rail freight capabilities, which, despite recent efforts by industry, government and Transnet, has had the effect of curbing the revenues and export volumes of many mining groups. Mabunda said in May, when she started at TE, freight rail capacity was constrained by the 394 new generations locomotives…