Star 2025-03-31

ArcelorMittal South Africa (AMSA), which is in dire financial straits, has welcomed the International Trade Administration Commission of South Africa’s (ITAC) review of the steel industry tariff review. The ITAC review could be a lifeline for the company if additional import tariffs are imposed. AMSA, which has been in existence since 1928 having started out as government-owned Iscor, is in favour of localisation and domestic supply. The biggest steel producer in sub-Saharan Africa announced late last year that it was looking into closing its long-steel business in Newcastle and Vereeniging. This placed about 3 000 people at risk of losing their jobs and spurred government to help bail the company out. So far, government has extended some R1.8 billion to partially bail the company out on condition that AMSA participates…

Standard Bank Group CEO Sim Tshabalala’s single figure remuneration increased 7.1% to R89.22 million in the year to December 31, while that of his former deputy CEO Kenny Fihla, who this month announced his resignation to become CEO of Absa, fell by 3.7% to R67.29m. According to the remuneration report of Africa’s biggest bank by assets, released on Friday, Fihla’s cost-to-company was increased to R9.5m from R8.7m on September 1, 2024 following his appointment as deputy CEO of the group. His 2024 short-term incentive award reflected both his role as Corporate and Investment Banking CEO until August 2024, and his role as deputy CEO of the group from September 2024. Tshabalala’s total single figure was 8.3% short of the maximum payable under the performance parameters of the group’s remuneration policy…

Unless the ANC embraces coalition governance fully, fiscal consolidation will remain out of reach, says curency strategist Andre Cilliers The rand fell by nearly 1% to R18.40 against the US dollar over the course of last week as market concerns continued over the National Budget deadlock and whether parties in Parliament will reach consensus before the Wednesday deadline. Parties within the Government of National Unity (GNU) are divided on whether to support Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana’s proposal to increase value-added tax incrementally by 1 percentage point over the next two fiscal years to plug the R58 billion Budget shortfall. Moody’s Investor Services has already fired a warning shot, saying that if the budget fails to pass in Parliament, longer-term fiscal credibility could be at risk. On the political front, the…

The latest Policy Uncertainty Index (PUI) from North West University (NWU), released on Friday, painted a grim picture of South Africa’s economic landscape, with the index plummeting further into negative territory to a staggering 78.6 for the first quarter of 2025, up from 65.7 in the preceding quarter. This increase marked the highest level of uncertainty recorded since the PUI’s inception in early 2016, signalling alarming implications for business confidence and investment environments in the country. NWU Business School economist, Professor Raymond Parsons, noted that the persistent negative factors outweighing positive ones were indicative of broader economic turbulence. “Persistent negative factors again outweighed positive ones. This was the net outcome of the PUI’s calibration of both positive and negative factors influencing the level of policy uncertainty in South Africa in…

The Minerals Council of South Africa has remained confident that the mining industry was firmly on the path to Zero Harm after recording a historic low of 42 deaths in 2024, a 24% decrease from 55 in the previous year. This marked a significant milestone in the industry’s quest to ensure safe mining practices and highlighted a commendable reduction in workplace fatalities while recorded injuries fell to 1 841, reflecting a 16% drop from 2023. Minerals Council CEO, Mzila Mthenjane, said this showcased that the industry was on a definitive path towards achieving its goal of Zero Harm—ensuring every employee returns home safely and in good health. However, Mthenjane emphasised that falls of ground remained the highest risk of all underground mines and management of these incidents remained a critical…

"April is the cruellest month, breeding / Lilacs out of the dead land, mixing / Memory and desire, stirring / Dull roots with spring rain." — T.S. Eliot, The Waste Land (1922) T.S. Eliot’s 'April is the cruellest month' unfortunately rings true for South Africa in 2025 — not as a hopeful spring, but as we face unprecedented, unpalatable economic challenges, none of which are easy. This Wednesday, as South Africa moves into April, brings to the table a critical Budget vote, US President Donald Trump’s tariff deadline, and uncertainty over a new US Ambassador to our sunny shores. It’s a gauntlet demanding sharp focus from businesses and policymakers. Parliament will soon vote on Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana’s controversial revised Budget, now mired in Government of National Unity (GNU) discord.…