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Haiti proclaimed its independence on January 1, 1804, after a prolonged armed struggle against French colonial rule.

It was a prosperous colony that supplied France with threequarters of its wealth.

It was the only successful slave revolution in the world and made an immense contribution to humanity, since it modified the geopolitical order of slavery worldwide.

As a result of the proclamation of independence, France imposed a debt of more than $20 billion (R305bn) and the development of Haiti was very limited.

Haiti’s future is conditioned by its vast public debt, which in 2017, was $2 666m and in 2018 it reached 33.02 percent of the gross domestic product.

This debt comes in large part from the agreement that has provided Haiti privileged access to Venezuelan oil through Petrocaribe.

In the 18th century, St Dominique (Haiti) was the richest colony in the French Empire and was known as the “Pearl of the Antilles”. Today Haiti is the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere, with a GDP per capita of $870 in 2018.

The country operates under a semi-presidential political regime, following the constitution approved in 1987, after the long dictatorship (30 years) of the Duvaliers.

Haití and Canada are the only two independent nations in the Americas that have French as an official language.

The problems of political instability, low productive capacity, corruption, foreign interventionism and poverty have negatively marked the history of this fighting people. To all this we must add the frequent natural disasters.

In 2010, an earthquake killed hundreds of thousands of people and left the country even more devastated, without infrastructure or supplies. In 2016, Hurricane Matthew created a new humanitarian crisis. The combination of external and endogenous factors has made this country one of the poorest in the world.

The country has also been affected by lack of strategic infrastructure which can improve the welfare of its people.

There is no national grid and electricity is provided by a small number of independent companies which has allowed its provision to be limited only to the more privileged part of the society making the vicious cycle of poverty continue.

Recently, alleged acts of corruption have appeared regarding the management of the funds coming from this programme.

The case came to light as a result of an investigation by Haiti’s Superior Court of Accounts and could involve members of the current government who allegedly appropriated millions of dollars for projects not executed.

As a result, violence has returned to the streets, especially in the capital of Port-au-Prince, with vast protests that were escalated on February 7, the day that President Jovenel Moise completed two years in office.

Neil de Beer is president of Investment Fund Africa (www.ifa.africa), and advises numerous African states on economic development.

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]]>https://www.iol.co.za/business-report/opinion/caribbean-pearls-descent-to-disaster-33944272https://www.iol.co.za/business-report/opinion/caribbean-pearls-descent-to-disaster-33944272Thu, 03 Oct 2019 08:16:25 GMTThu, 03 Oct 2019 08:22:00 GMTIOL02019-10-03T08:16:25.514Z:00+02002019-10-03T08:22:10.000Z:00+0200It was the only successful slave revolution in the world and made a contribution to humanity since it modified the geopolitical order of slavery.

“Investors are sending a message. They’re critical of us and our ability to generate returns. They do not want us to generate volumes, they want us to generate returns,” said Griffith.

Griffith said the company was asked a lot of questions on whether it was looking for additional mergers and acquisitions and whether it would move to invest outside of South Africa.

“The best resources for platinum group metal (PGM) are in South Africa, We are a company that is generating good returns. While we are getting enquiries, we are not getting pressure to move outside of South Africa,” he said.

South Africa accounts for 80 percent of global platinum supply, and a number of marginal and loss-making mines have been shut in the past few years on depressed metal prices in an environment characterised by oversupply and high input costs.

The PGM price environment has however rallied in the past six months, driven by higher palladium and rhodium prices.

Nico Muller, chief executive of Impala Platinum, said since its inception, the PGM industry had been driven by confidence that demand would increase into infinity.

Muller said the industry burnt cash in developing new supply with investment jumping from R8 billion to R25bn until the 2008 financial crisis.

“In South Africa, our balance sheets are forcing us to not support loss-making assets,” Muller said, adding no one wanted to support loss-making mines.

Sibanye-Stillwater became the latest company to announce restructuring plans at its Marikana mines to address the ongoing financial losses experienced at these operations with certain shafts having reached the end of their economic reserve lives.

The company said last week it would enter into consultations with relevant stakeholders in terms of Section 189A of the Labour Relations Act regarding the restructuring of its Marikana operation, previously owned by Lonmin.

Sibanye-Stillwater, which merged with Lonmin in June, said about 5270 jobs, consisting of about 3904 employees and 1366 contractors, were expected to be lost due to planned restructuring at its Marikana operation.

Muller said shareholders were demanding a prudent approach to growth. “Acquisitions have been a sensitive topic. Shareholders are now in favouring lower risk lower-cost opportunities.”

Labour comprises around 60 percent of costs in mining.

BUSINESS REPORT 

]]>https://www.iol.co.za/business-report/economy/agitated-investors-are-applying-the-screws-to-mining-industry-33943459https://www.iol.co.za/business-report/economy/agitated-investors-are-applying-the-screws-to-mining-industry-33943459Thu, 03 Oct 2019 08:30:00 GMTThu, 03 Oct 2019 08:32:00 GMTIOL02019-10-03T08:30:00.000Z:00+02002019-10-03T08:32:35.000Z:00+0200The mining industry is under increasing pressure to deliver returns from agitated investors who want improved capital discipline.JOHANNESBURG – South African private sector activity remained in contraction for a fifth consecutive month in September as new orders and output fell while sentiment was subdued, a survey showed on Thursday.

]]>https://www.iol.co.za/business-report/economy/private-sector-contracts-again-in-september-pmi-33948752https://www.iol.co.za/business-report/economy/private-sector-contracts-again-in-september-pmi-33948752Thu, 03 Oct 2019 09:12:00 GMTThu, 03 Oct 2019 09:12:00 GMTIOL12019-10-03T09:12:00.000Z:00+02002019-10-03T09:12:46.000Z:00+0200South African private sector activity remained in contraction for a fifth consecutive month in September.

It said the imposition of import duties by the US on imported steel had plagued Robor’s sales of specialised steel pipe into the US oil and gas industry, which was previously a lucrative export market;

Regarding Eskom, Robor had suffered from the cessation of the 5000 kilometre investment in additional power transmission lines, which Robor had invested for, extensively.

Robor had undertaken restructuring and cost-cutting in 2019, had concluded agreements to make sure its banking and trade credit insurance facilities remained in place, took measures to improve supply of coil and other raw materials and it had explored avenues to raise capital.

Tiso Blackstar were unable to commit further capital as it wished to divest of its non-core assets, of which its investment in Robor was one. “Regretfully, despite all efforts Robor became unable to maintain the required levels of working capital and liquidity to retain its going concern status,” Tiso Blackstar said.

In June, Tiso agreed to sell its South African media, broadcasting and content business to Lebashe Investment Group for R800million, excluding Gallo and its radio assets.

In January Robor was granted approval to merge with Macsteel’s tube and pipe business, a deal that had been necessitated by losses at Macsteel’s tube and pipe business for a number of years. The two companies were South Africa’s leading steel tube and pipe manufacturers. Robor said at the time their plants had been under-utilised for a number of years.

Tiso’s share price closed 5.88percent lower at R3.20 on the JSE yesterday.

BUSINESS REPORT 

]]>https://www.iol.co.za/business-report/companies/tiso-blackstar-subsidiary-robor-is-forced-to-go-into-liquidation-33944973https://www.iol.co.za/business-report/companies/tiso-blackstar-subsidiary-robor-is-forced-to-go-into-liquidation-33944973Thu, 03 Oct 2019 09:30:00 GMTThu, 03 Oct 2019 09:32:00 GMTIOL0080044902019-10-03T09:30:00.000Z:00+02002019-10-03T09:32:43.000Z:00+0200Tiso Blackstar said its 47.6% held subsidiary Robor Proprietary, a leading steel pipe manufacturer of more than 90 years, was going into liquidation.

The group said in a trading guidance to investors yesterday that it anticipated it would grow by more than 20percent in its subscriber base and revenue for the seventh consecutive time.

The company, headed by founding major shareholder Zak Calisto, attributed the exceptional performance in difficult times to the high crime rate in South Africa and other emerging markets, as well as it achieving economies of scale in the roll-out of its technological services.

It said its headline earnings per share were now projected to increase by between 69 and 75cents per share, up from 57c in the previous reporting period.

Basic earnings a share are expected in the same range, a growth from the 57.9c per share from the same period a year before.

Cartrack said that in the 2019 financial year its revenue grew by 28percent to R1.6 billion.

Cartrack recorded a 30percent subscription revenue growth to R1.5million.

It also grew earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation by 17percent in the period to R761m from R651m.

Return on equity though in that period declined to 50percent from 58percent in the previous period.

Cartrack, which has more than 2338 employees in 23 countries across five continents says that its industry-leading audited recovery rate of 92percent underpins the quality of its security technology in high-crime regions.

The group said that it was eyeing growth in the rest of the continent, as in the previous period it had delivered an improved performance, despite operating in a weak regional economic backdrop.

The subscriber base in Africa increased by 4percent, and sub- scription revenue grew by 5percent from R93m to R98m, while total revenue increased by 11percent from R105m to R116m, driven by an increase of new sales in the current year.

“Africa continues to play a critical role in ensuring a high level of service to customers who increasingly travel across their borders,” the group said.

Cartrack shares closed 7.44percent higher at R20.95 on the JSE yesterday.

BUSINESS REPORT 

]]>https://www.iol.co.za/business-report/companies/cartrack-benefits-from-sas-high-crime-rate-33946778https://www.iol.co.za/business-report/companies/cartrack-benefits-from-sas-high-crime-rate-33946778Thu, 03 Oct 2019 10:00:00 GMTThu, 03 Oct 2019 10:03:00 GMTIOL12019-10-03T10:00:00.000Z:00+02002019-10-03T10:03:09.000Z:00+0200Cartrack shot up by more than 7% on the JSE after the vehicle recovery services firm said it expected to reap benefits from crime in SA.

“In the last 12 months, we have seen an escalation in organised protests which are in the interest of a small number of individuals who ask us to breach standard commercial processes for their own benefit,” Fraser said.

WATCH: 

Fraser also noted an increase in illegal mining activity.

“These activities are disruptive to our operations when they escalate to a point where they risk the safety of our people and the local community,” he said.

Fraser said while the protests had occurred across the country, they had been a particular challenge for communities around the company’s Energy Coal business in Mpumalanga.

He noted that the draft Integrated Resource Plan forecasted a decline in coal-fired power by 2030.

“We know we have a responsibility to contribute to the economic stability and development in the regions around our mines,” he said.

“But we need a continued and co-ordinated effort to manage the threat of organised protests and we cannot allow illegal mining.

“An increase in the frequency of these specific actions will have a long-term impact on South Africa’s competitiveness and ability to attract investment.”

Fraser said the company’s South Africa Energy Coal business was working together with other coal producers in Mpumalanga to address concerns raised by the communities.

He said the Department of Minerals and Energy had supported the process.

South 32, the Australian headquartered company that was established in 2015 after being spun off from global diversified mining giant BHP Billiton, announced in August that it had entered into exclusive negotiations with black-owned Seriti Resources to acquire its South Africa Energy Coal business.

Seriti Resources chief executive Mike Teke said earlier that the mining industry needed to start building collaboration with communities.

He also said that coal remained viable, despite concerns on climate change.

“Coal is a fossil fuel, and Sub-Saharan Africa is going to use coal for a long time. We should not be thinking we are going to switch off from coal. I am speaking for coal and am not an environmental denialist,” said Teke.

Fraser said that when the company announced its intention to broaden ownership of South Africa Energy Coal in November 2017, its vision was that it should be a sustainable business for the long-term and that it should become South African black-owned.

BUSINESS REPORT 

]]>https://www.iol.co.za/business-report/companies/watch-community-protests-over-mining-are-on-the-rise-33946780https://www.iol.co.za/business-report/companies/watch-community-protests-over-mining-are-on-the-rise-33946780Thu, 03 Oct 2019 10:30:00 GMTThu, 03 Oct 2019 12:02:00 GMTIOL02019-10-03T10:30:00.000Z:00+02002019-10-03T12:02:51.000Z:00+0200Mike Fraser yesterday highlighted the need to address the escalating number of community protests on the doorstep of mining operations.

Best Foods operates in the QSR contract logistics market in the UK.

Bidcorp said that it expected no material financial impact on its consolidated net assets and profit for the year to end June 2020 as a result of the transaction. It said Best Foods had been recorded as an uncategorised transaction in terms of the Listings Requirements of the JSE.

Peter Takaendesa, a portfolio manager at Mergence Investment Managers, said Bidcorp had been in the market trying to sell its UK contract business since late 2017 and previous potential buyers failed to conclude the transaction later in 2018.

“The new potential buyer, Booker, appears to be in a strong position to conclude the transaction, unless blocked by competition authorities. Bidcorp has classified these operations as “discontinued operations” since December 2017 as they are considered non-core to its food services business and have been loss making for a while,” Takaendesa said.

He added that total discontinued operations reported losses of R732million during the year to end June and were excluded from the normalised headline earnings numbers reported by the company. “Although the transaction is not a game-changer for Bidcorp, it is clearly the right thing to do as the company has not been able to turn the operations into profitability for a while,” he said.

Bidcorp reported a 9.8 percent increase in revenue to R129.3billion while trading profit increased by 11.8percent to R6.7bn, but trading profit was up by 7.1percent on a constant currency basis. Its headline earnings per share increased by 12.5percent to 1443.6 cents a share and the group declared a dividend of 640c a share, which was up by 14.3 percent.

Bidcorp shares declined 0.31percent on the JSE yesterday to close at R325.

BUSINESS REPORT 

]]>https://www.iol.co.za/business-report/companies/bidcorp-to-dispose-of-best-food-logistics-business-in-the-uk-33947700https://www.iol.co.za/business-report/companies/bidcorp-to-dispose-of-best-food-logistics-business-in-the-uk-33947700Thu, 03 Oct 2019 11:30:00 GMTThu, 03 Oct 2019 11:32:00 GMTIOL12019-10-03T11:30:00.000Z:00+02002019-10-03T11:32:45.000Z:00+0200International food services business Bid Corporation (Bidcorp) is to dispose of its Best Food Logistics business in the UK.JOHANNESBURG – Investec Bank, while retaining two of its market-leading exchange traded notes (ETNs) primary listings on the JSE, had now secondary listed them on A2X Markets, it said on Thursday. 

]]>https://www.iol.co.za/business-report/companies/a2x-lists-exchange-traded-notes-in-a-first-33960844https://www.iol.co.za/business-report/companies/a2x-lists-exchange-traded-notes-in-a-first-33960844Thu, 03 Oct 2019 12:28:00 GMTThu, 03 Oct 2019 12:37:00 GMTIOL02019-10-03T12:28:00.000Z:00+02002019-10-03T12:37:34.000Z:00+0200Investec Bank, while retaining two of its market-leading exchange traded notes (ETNs) primary listings on the JSE.

“Investors must believe we have confidence in our industry, economy and institutions if they are going to invest,” Cutifani said.

“We cannot achieve this when we keep pulling from different ends.”

Cutifani said the industry needed an aligned voice, bringing labour, government, non-governmental organisations and mining companies to promote the South African mining industry.

“I’m not for a second suggesting we should abandon our respective positions and causes, I’m merely making the point that we are all vested in the success of this industry and need to start acting in that way,” he said.

The industry has a revised mining charter, which was gazetted last year by Mineral Resources and Energy Minister Gwede Mantashe as a step towards policy and regulatory certainty.

It replaced former Mineral Resources Minister Mosebenzi Zwane’s charter that threw the industry into disarray in 2017, with an estimated R50 billion lost in value.

“While we may have misgivings on some of the unresolved issues in the charter, it is clear that these can only be resolved if we, as an industry, work with the Department of Mineral Resources and Energy to find a solution that guarantees the growth and sustainability of South Africa’s mining sector,” Cutifani said.

The charter speaks of 30percent black ownership at permit holding mining companies from a previous target of 26percent.

The Minerals Council of South Africa, formerly known as the Chamber of Mines, took the third mining charter to court for a judicial review, citing that certain elements of the charter were problematic.

The council challenged the charter’s continuing consequences provisions after ongoing talks with the Department of Mineral Resources and Energy failed to find a solution within the 180 days available to file a review application.

The Department of Mineral Resources and Energy sought leave to appeal a court judgment in April over a crucial black-ownership principle in the country’s Mining Charter.

In April the court granted a declaratory order on the “once empowered always empowered” rule for Black Economic Empowerment ownership transactions related to the mining industry.

Earlier yesterday, when he was asked what he would do if he were the Minister of Mineral Resources and Energy for a day, Anglo American Platinum chief executive Chris Griffith said he would withdraw the appeal against the rule.

“The process of the appeal seems to prolong the uncertainty. I would kill once empowered. I would allow juniors and explorers to be exempt from the charter,” said Griffith.

BUSINESS REPORT 

]]>https://www.iol.co.za/business-report/companies/sa-mining-needs-a-unified-vision-33947592https://www.iol.co.za/business-report/companies/sa-mining-needs-a-unified-vision-33947592Thu, 03 Oct 2019 12:30:00 GMTThu, 03 Oct 2019 12:37:00 GMTIOL02019-10-03T12:30:00.000Z:00+02002019-10-03T12:37:34.000Z:00+0200Anglo American Plc chief executive Mark Cutifani yesterday called on the mining industry to promote itself and rally behind a unified vision.JOHANNESBURG – South Africa’s public debt could rise as high as 95% of gross domestic product by 2024 if the government doesn’t restructure the state-run utility Eskom and implement a workable growth plan, the Institute of International Finance said in report.

]]>https://www.iol.co.za/business-report/energy/south-africa-debt-to-gdp-could-reach-95-by-2024-iif-says-33952766https://www.iol.co.za/business-report/energy/south-africa-debt-to-gdp-could-reach-95-by-2024-iif-says-33952766Thu, 03 Oct 2019 13:00:00 GMTThu, 03 Oct 2019 13:02:00 GMTIOL02019-10-03T13:00:00.000Z:00+02002019-10-03T13:02:38.000Z:00+0200SA’s public debt could rise as high as 95% of gross domestic product by 2024 if the government doesn’t restructure the state-run utility Eskom.

The group had 170million (R2.83billion) to invest into new assets, capital expenditure and further equity into the Titanium joint venture.

It said a 115.4m increase in its existing debt facility with BerlinHyp had been agreed, which increases the facility to 180.2m.

The Nabern-Kirchheim business park asset will be added to the security portfolio as part of the agreement. The Nabern-Kirchheim asset was previously financed as part of the K-Bonds facility – the K-Bonds facility was repurchased on completion of Titanium.

Some 24.6m of the proceeds from the completion of Titanium were used to repay K-Bonds, leaving a net 90m of surplus funds available from the extended BerlinHyp facility.

Loan to value was expected to remain at less than 40percent after drawing down the increased facility with BerlinHyp.

Positive letting activity was reflected in more than 50000m² of move-ins, offsetting vacating tenants, which included 25000m² of move-outs in recently acquired sites, which were known to the group prior to acquisition.

Annualised rent roll, including acquisitions and disposals was about 78.5m, compared with 76.5m at the start of the period.

Like-for-like annualised rent roll increased by 0.9percent to 77.2m, compared to 76.5m at the start of the period, despite the move-outs.

The Titanium joint venture with AXA Investment Managers – Real Assets was completed in July, through the sale of 65percent of its interest in five business parks generating net proceeds for Sirius of more than 70m.

A pipeline of acquisition opportunities which fit with Titanium’s investment criteria had been identified.

Three property acquisitions, worth 21.9m were completed and two additional properties were notarised for 65.7m.

In July Sirius established its Titanium real estate investment joint venture with clients represented by AXA Investment Managers – Real Assets.

Sirius Real Estate shares rose 1.24percent on the JSE yesterday to close at R13.89.

BUSINESS REPORT 

]]>https://www.iol.co.za/business-report/companies/sirius-occupier-demand-strong-and-trading-is-in-line-with-expectations-33947713https://www.iol.co.za/business-report/companies/sirius-occupier-demand-strong-and-trading-is-in-line-with-expectations-33947713Thu, 03 Oct 2019 14:30:00 GMTThu, 03 Oct 2019 14:32:00 GMTIOL02019-10-03T14:30:00.000Z:00+02002019-10-03T14:32:22.000Z:00+02000f87fe0f-1960-4c50-893c-0f915c25f0b8APSirius Real Estate, an operator of branded business parks in Germany, yesterday said that occupier demand remained strong in the six months to September 30.

]]>https://www.iol.co.za/business-report/companies/nepi-rockcastle-in-r832bn-unsecured-bond-issue-33947714https://www.iol.co.za/business-report/companies/nepi-rockcastle-in-r832bn-unsecured-bond-issue-33947714Thu, 03 Oct 2019 15:30:00 GMTThu, 03 Oct 2019 15:32:00 GMTIOL12019-10-03T15:30:00.000Z:00+02002019-10-03T15:32:42.000Z:00+0200Nepi Rockcastle, which owns properties in central and eastern Europe, yesterday undertook a 500 million (R8.32 billion) bookbuild for an unsecured bond issue.INTERNATIONAL – Every month, Ifeyinwa Abel, the secretary of a Pentecostal church in Lagos, spends as much as a quarter of her salary sending money to pay for diabetes drugs to her mother 430 miles away in Abia Ohafia, a small agricultural village.

]]>https://www.iol.co.za/business-report/international/africas-most-populous-nation-missed-the-mobile-money-revolution-33955341https://www.iol.co.za/business-report/international/africas-most-populous-nation-missed-the-mobile-money-revolution-33955341Fri, 04 Oct 2019 04:30:00 GMTFri, 04 Oct 2019 04:32:00 GMTIOL02019-10-04T04:30:00.000Z:00+02002019-10-04T04:32:05.000Z:00+0200In a region that accounts for half of the world’s 866 million mobile banking and payment accounts and two-thirds of all money transferred by phone.

The Act, signed on Wednesday, repeals the 43-year-old Estate Agency Affairs Act of 19, and is aimed at improving the functioning of the property market, which includes regulating the buying, selling and renting of land and buildings.

It aims to put in place better monitoring mechanisms, including requiring inspectors to obtain warrants to enter premises.

It was also aimed at ensuring “seamless processes and professional standards in the real estate industry, said South African Housing and Infrastructure Fund (SAHIF) chief executive Rali Mampeule.

He said the Act was “a progressive step in the right direction for the country and it will play a crucial role in addressing other issues within the industry” .

Among other innovations, the Act establishes a Property Practitioners Regulatory Authority and provides for the appointment of the board of this authority. This will be the continuation of the Estate Agency Affairs Board.

Seeff Property Group chairman Sammuel Seeff said his initial feeling was the new Act should be welcomed, but he had some reservations about aspects of it.

These were that while the preamble stated the Act should aid transformation, there was very little in the way of practical measures to do so in the Act itself.

A problem in the estate agent industry in the past has been its ability to attract and retain black estate agents, and there was no assistance or incentives for the industry in the Act.

Adding to the uncertainty was the targeted levels of black economic empowerment (BEE) in the industry, as the regulations on BEE in the industry had not yet been finalised, he said.

Another aspect that might be challenged in future was the fact that the definition of a property practitioner in the Act was far too wide, said Seeff.

A  spokesperson for RE/MAX Southern Africa said their management would only comment on the new Act once they had an opportunity to scrutinise it, as the bill had gone through a great number of revisions from various industry players before being made into law.

The Act was introduced to the National Assembly in June 2018 and was passed by the National Assembly in December. The National Council of Provinces also gave it a thumbs up on March 28.

BUSINESS REPORT

]]>https://www.iol.co.za/business-report/economy/property-practitioners-act-welcomed-by-estate-agents-33964610https://www.iol.co.za/business-report/economy/property-practitioners-act-welcomed-by-estate-agents-33964610Fri, 04 Oct 2019 06:30:00 GMTFri, 04 Oct 2019 06:31:00 GMTIOL02885047612019-10-04T06:30:00.000Z:00+02002019-10-04T06:31:14.000Z:00+0200The Property Practitioners Act of 2019 signed into law by President Cyril Ramaphosa was on Thursday broadly welcomed by estate agents.JOHANNESBURG – South Africa’s struggling state-owned defence company suffered an operating loss of R1.9 billion ($125.3 million) for the year to March 31, it said on Friday.

]]>https://www.iol.co.za/business-report/economy/south-african-defence-group-denel-reports-r19bn-loss-34032692https://www.iol.co.za/business-report/economy/south-african-defence-group-denel-reports-r19bn-loss-34032692Fri, 04 Oct 2019 08:37:00 GMTFri, 04 Oct 2019 09:01:00 GMTIOL02019-10-04T08:37:00.000Z:00+02002019-10-04T09:01:37.000Z:00+0200South Africa’s struggling state-owned defence company suffered an operating loss of R1.9bn ($125.3m) for the year to March 31, it said on Friday.

The remaining R1.1 billion would be transferred to the ailing public broadcaster when three outstanding conditions had been met, said Ndabeni-Abrahams.

In his February budget speech, finance minister Tito Mboweni said the broadcaster would be considered for a bailout subject to several preconditions being met.

Ndabeni-Abrahams said that in its response to the preconditions submitted by the SABC in August, it had been found that the broadcaster had met five of the eight conditions set by national Treasury.

The conditions that had been met were:

• The determination of immediate cash requirements for the next 12 to 18 months;
• A detailed breakdown of how revenue enhancement was to be achieved, including cost cutting initiatives;
• A thorough investigation had to be initiated into what caused the financial collapse of the broadcaster and why previous turnaround plans had failed;
• An update had to be provided of how the SABC was dealing with people implicated in investigations;
• A turnaround plan had to be developed taking into account various reports into the broadcaster, including those done by the Public Protector, Special Investigation Unit, Auditor General and Parliament.

The two partially met conditions included the production of separate financial reporting for public and commercial broadcasting services, and the identification of non-core assets for disposal which would assist with recapitalisation requirements.

The minister said the broadcaster had not met the conditions to develop a comprehensive private section participation strategy or clearly highlighted initiatives to be implemented and the net value that could be derived from these partnerships.

“However, willingness to work on this condition had been expressed, and was welcomed by national Treasury and the department of communications,” said Ndabeni-Abrahams.

The SABC had demonstrated evidence that it would fully comply with the remaining conditions, she said. 

When it tabled its annual report in Parliament last week, the broadcaster reported a net loss of R482.4 million at the end of March 2019. 

But according to the SABC, the net loss was a 35% improvement on the restated loss incurred in the 2017/18 financial year. The main contributors were losses incurred on sporting events and interest incurred as a result of liquidity constraints. 

A further contributor to the loss was the decline in total revenue by 3% to R6.4 billion from that of the 2017/18 financial year, according to the SABC. 

Total expenses declined by 6%, or R475 million, to R7 billion from that of the 2017/18 financial year.   

– African News Agency (ANA) 

]]>https://www.iol.co.za/business-report/economy/sabc-r21bn-partial-bailout-five-conditions-of-eight-have-been-met-34035282https://www.iol.co.za/business-report/economy/sabc-r21bn-partial-bailout-five-conditions-of-eight-have-been-met-34035282Fri, 04 Oct 2019 09:26:00 GMTFri, 04 Oct 2019 09:31:00 GMTIOL12019-10-04T09:26:00.000Z:00+02002019-10-04T09:31:09.000Z:00+0200The South African Broadcasting Corporation will receive R2.1bn of its R3.2 billion bailout on Monday.

De Beers said the latest sales value of $295 million (R4.51 billion) of rough diamonds sold to selected buyers in Botswana last month was the lowest by far since it began releasing sales data in 2016.

Chief executive Bruce Cleaver said the miner was struggling to maintain diamond sales growth in the face of subdued economic conditions, a slowdown in China, protests in Hong Kong have weakened diamond demand along with a considerable slowdown in sales ahead of the upcoming Diwali festival in India this month

“As we approach what is traditionally a quieter time of year for the diamond industry during the Diwali holiday, we have again offered our customers flexibility during this sales cycle,” Cleaver said.

The company has decided to let buyers reject stones. This will help reduce the oversupply in the market, which should eventually allow prices to recover, but that still does not help current sales figures.

The sales made at the latest round are progressively lower than the $484m sold a year earlier.

This year, De Beers offered its buyers greater flexibility to reject or delay purchases, to cope with a weaker diamond market and a glut of stones.

“The diamond market is clearly weak and this appears to be now impacting the higher end of the market as well, which had previously held up,” an analysts said.

Anglo American’s trading on the JSE was as a result subdued, it lost more than 2 percent in intra-day trade as the markets grasped the implications of the low sale of rough diamonds.

The level of trade on resources though was in tempo, with stocks such as Kumba, Anglo, BHP, Glencore, South32 down 4 to 5 percent on the back of US manufacture data, trade wars, threat of capital sanctions, and attack by  President Donald Trump again on Fed policy.

FNB analyst, Wayne McCurrie, on his twitter timeline warned that resources stocks were generally under an onslaught.

All share index down 0.4%. Resources again on back of poor international data and trade war etc. Anglo released de beers sales that looked ok, but share down along with other resource shares.

— Wayne McCurrie (@WayneMcCurrie)
October 3, 2019

BUSINESS REPORT

]]>https://www.iol.co.za/business-report/companies/de-beers-takes-more-beating-from-its-eighth-cycle-sale-33995739https://www.iol.co.za/business-report/companies/de-beers-takes-more-beating-from-its-eighth-cycle-sale-33995739Fri, 04 Oct 2019 10:30:00 GMTFri, 04 Oct 2019 10:33:00 GMTIOL003500196002019-10-04T10:30:00.000Z:00+02002019-10-04T10:33:06.000Z:00+0200De Beers said the latest sales value of $295 million of rough diamonds sold to selected buyers in Botswana last month was the lowest by far.INTERNATIONAL – Capetonians don’t know who to blame for the disappearance of their great white sharks: The orcas that eat them, the fishermen who sell their prey to Australia for use in fish-and-chips shops or gradual ecological change.

National Tension

Spotters, who began monitoring the city’s beaches 14 years ago after a series of fatal attacks, haven’t seen a great white in 2019 after averaging 205 sightings between 2010 and 2016. Sightings fell to 50 last year. A number of whale carcasses that washed ashore had no shark bites, an unusual occurrence.

The national government criticized the assessment of the situation by Cape Town’s municipality.

“The department is unable to corroborate the City of Cape Town’s statements,” it said. “There is a need to focus all management decisions on information that is factual and scientifically sound,” it said, saying that cage divers and scientists have seen great whites in the bay.

The three cage-diving operators in False Bay, who lower tourists into the water around Seal Island to view the 4.5 meter (15-foot) sharks, say they have not spotted any this year and the about 40 tagged sharks haven’t been picked up by sensors in the bay.

The state fisheries department hasn’t released assessments of the impact of fishing on the stocks of the great white’s prey for several years.

Nicole the Shark

Papers written by the government’s own scientists noted the increasing scarcity of the sharks and a 2018 study said the smoothhound and soupfin types they eat were likely over-fished. The department didn’t respond to questions on the effect of so-called demersal shark long-line fishing that sees small sharks sent to Australia where they are sold as “flake.”

Still, great whites are a migratory species and are more common around the middle of the year in Cape Town. Also, scientists say fish stocks appear to be moving gradually east.

“Great whites are highly migratory animals that can swim great distances,” said Bernard Seret, a marine biologist who worked as a shark specialist at the French National Museum of Natural History. “If they are still absent a year from now, scientists could start developing hypotheses. It’s much too soon to draw any conclusions.”

In 2005, a great white shark — named Nicole after Australian actress Nicole Kidman — that had been tagged in South Africa, swam to Australia and back.

The arrival four years ago of two male orcas, known as Port and Starboard as their dorsal fins are bent to the left and right respectively, may have had an effect. The two orcas hunt large sharks, whose livers they tear out and eat before discarding the rest of the carcass.

Port and Starboard

There have been instances elsewhere including California’s Farallon Islands where great whites have temporarily left after being preyed on by orcas, according to Alison Kock, a marine biologist at the Cape Research Centre. There is evidence of them eating both great white and sevengill sharks in False Bay, she added.

“Port and Starboard came to the island one Sunday, smashed a few sharks and the sharks didn’t come back for three weeks,” said Stef Swanson, the owner of Shark Explorers, one of the cage-dive companies.

For the cage divers, who charge as much as 3,500 rand ($234) a trip, the disappearance is a disaster.

“With the white shark crisis, many of those clients have canceled their bookings,” said Swanson, the web page of who’s company — like its two rivals — features a great white, noting that bookings are down 50%. “At the end of the day the client wants to see the white shark. It’s part of their bucket list.”

Safer Swimming

While the impact on tourism is worrying, scientists and the city’s tourism body, Wesgro, say of more concern could be the impact on the ecosystem.

Already there have been changes. Seals are swimming more openly away from the island, sevengill sharks have emerged from the kelp forests and bronze whaler sharks have been seen swimming near beaches.

“White sharks influence hundreds of species in the bay, either through direct predation or by the fear of predation,” Kock said. “Their continued absence will likely result in more ecological changes, many of which we can’t predict.”

BLOOMBERG 

]]>https://www.iol.co.za/business-report/economy/as-great-white-sharks-disappear-cape-town-searches-for-reasons-33657901https://www.iol.co.za/business-report/economy/as-great-white-sharks-disappear-cape-town-searches-for-reasons-33657901Sat, 05 Oct 2019 07:00:00 GMTSat, 05 Oct 2019 07:27:00 GMTIOL02019-10-05T07:00:00.000Z:00+02002019-10-05T07:27:15.000Z:00+0200Capetonians don’t know who to blame for the disappearance of their great white sharks.INTERNATIONAL – 
The risk of a property bubble in the euro zone surged last year as ultra-low interest rates helped drive up house prices.

]]>https://www.iol.co.za/business-report/international/property-bubble-risks-in-euro-area-grow-33777124https://www.iol.co.za/business-report/international/property-bubble-risks-in-euro-area-grow-33777124Sat, 05 Oct 2019 13:00:00 GMTSat, 05 Oct 2019 14:04:00 GMTIOL02019-10-05T13:00:00.000Z:00+02002019-10-05T14:04:09.000Z:00+0200The risk of a property bubble in the euro zone surged last year as ultra-low interest rates helped drive up house prices.INTERNATIONAL – Qatar’s economy looks far from top form as it wraps up a flurry of building projects for the 2022 soccer World Cup.

What Our Economists Say…

“The latest numbers are showing that the World Cup-led construction boom in Qatar is nearing the end. The country will need to find other drivers for growth. It will likely fall back on the development of its vast natural gas reserves.” 
–Ziad Daoud, Mideast economist. 

For years, Qatar’s economy sped forward, propelled by $200 billion of infrastructure works to prepare for the world’s most watched sporting event. Alongside other efforts to diversify away from oil and gas, brisk construction and high property prices kept the tractors rolling.

But two in eight of the stadiums to host the World Cup have already been built, with the rest slated for completion by the end of next year. Qatar’s new metro system is also operational after some of its first line opened earlier this year.

On a quarterly basis, manufacturing, real estate and finance all grew in April-June

]]>https://www.iol.co.za/business-report/international/in-final-stretch-to-world-cup-qatar-economy-is-feeling-squeezed-33777128https://www.iol.co.za/business-report/international/in-final-stretch-to-world-cup-qatar-economy-is-feeling-squeezed-33777128Sat, 05 Oct 2019 16:00:00 GMTTue, 01 Oct 2019 12:32:00 GMTIOL02019-10-05T16:00:00.000Z:00+02002019-10-01T12:32:44.000Z:00+0200Qatar’s economy looks far from top form as it wraps up a flurry of building projects for the 2022 soccer World Cup.