News 16:00

BULLETIN 3 November 4 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# A new task team will fast-track Transnet’s rail restructuring
# Fuel prices will drop at midnight as government rolls out a ten-billion-rand relief package
# And Gauteng police prioritise security at 119 high-risk voting stations

# Government has announced plans to establish a technical task team before year-end to finalise the separation of Transnet’s Rail Infrastructure Manager from the group. The latest Operation Vulindlela report says the process is behind schedule, prompting stronger oversight from the Presidency, National Treasury and the Transport Department. The restructuring aims to create a more independent rail infrastructure manager, attract investment and give private train operators fairer access to the network. Eleven private operators have already secured rail access agreements.

# The Department of Mineral and Petroleum Resources has announced fuel price adjustments effective from midnight. Petrol prices will decrease by one cent per litre for grades 93 and 95, while diesel prices drop by between one-rand-ten and one-rand-twenty-cents. The changes follow a ten-billion-rand relief package from National Treasury, which temporarily cuts the fuel levy by one-rand-50-cent for petrol and three-rand for diesel. Meanwhile paraffin is up two-rand-75-cents.

# Gauteng police commissioner Tommy Mthombeni has confirmed 119 high-risk identified voting stations in the province ahead of tomorrow’s elections. Speaking in Mayfair, Mthombeni says of the province’s two-thousand-836 voting stations, 371 are classified as medium-risk, while two-thousand-336 are low-risk. He says security deployments are guided by assessments of possible protests, political tensions and service delivery unrest:

# The Department of Water and Sanitation is urging water users, particularly in Gauteng, to reduce consumption amid rising demand and the anticipated El Niño conditions during the summer season. El Niño is shifting regional weather patterns, increasing the risk of drought and pushing up summer temperatures. The department’s spokesperson, Wisane Mavasa, says Gauteng’s average daily water consumption stands at approximately 250 litres per person, significantly higher than the international average of 173 litres:

# Tennis: Italian Flavio Cobolli’s chances of reaching the ATP Finals for the first time had taken a hit when injury forced him out of the Paris Masters. He is currently best placed to secure the fifth berth after Germany’s Alexander Zverev, Spaniard Carlos Alcaraz, American Ben Shelton and Russian Medvedev had already qualified for the finals. Frenchman Arthur Fils, American Frances Tiafoe and Spaniard Rafael Jodar remain in contention for the tournament, starting in Turin, Italy, next Sunday.

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 16-rand-64-cents and the euro at 18-rand-60-cents. One British pound costs 22-rand-32-cents and Bitcoin trades at 77-thousand-305-dollars. Gold sells at three-thousand-911-dollars-70-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 109-dollars-26-sents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….