News 14:00

BULLETIN 14 August 2 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# Sacci’s Business Confidence Index still shows recovery after wavering in May
# The Save South Africa Civic Movement calls for the mass deportation of Ethiopian nationals
# And, mixed martial arts: Dricus du Plessis will have Springbok power by his side on Sunday

# The South African Chamber of Commerce and Industry says the conversion of the political environment was reflected in the business climate that initially wavered in May but started to recover in June and July. SACCI’s Business Confidence Index recovered by 1.2 index points in June and 0.1 in July, after dipping by 5.8 points in April and a further 1.1 points in May. Business sentiment was positively influenced by the increased number of new vehicle sales and a stronger and less volatile rand exchange rate.

# Former deputy president Baleka Mbete says the ANC has dropped the ball in its 30 years of democracy. In an SABC interview, she highlighted ongoing social issues like poverty and inadequate service delivery. Mbete emphasises a lack of strategic discussions within the party and expresses concern over the weakening of constitutional structures. She asks for renewed focus on leadership:

# The Save South Africa Civic Movement has joined calls by community forums and activists across the country, for the mass deportation of Ethiopian nationals. The movement’s Tebogo Mashilompane says Ethiopian nationals continue to undermine South Africa’s sovereignty. He calls on Police minister Senzo Mchunu to deal with officials who are enabling corruption:

# Thailand’s prime minister, Srettha Thavisin, has been removed from office after a court ruled he had violated the Constitution, plunging the kingdom into further political uncertainty. The Constitutional Court in Bangkok ruled Srettha had breached ethics rules by appointing a lawyer who had served prison time to Cabinet. A new government must now be formed, and the ruling coalition will nominate a new candidate for prime minister, to be voted on by the 500-seat parliament. The verdict means more upheaval for Thailand’s already turbulent political landscape.

# Mixed martial arts: Springbok captain Siya Kolisi and lock Eben Etzebeth are set to walk UFC middleweight champion Dricus du Plessis to the ring when he takes on Israel Adesanya in Perth on Sunday. This will be Du Plessis’ first title defence after becoming the first South African world champion when he beat Sean Strickland in Toronto in January. The Boks take on Australia in the second round of the Rugby Championship on Saturday. Du Plessis says having Kolisi and Etzebeth with him will be awesome.

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 18-rand-6-cents and the euro at 19-rand-91-cents. One British pound costs 23-rand-20-cents and Bitcoin trades at 61-thousand-100-dollars-89-cents. Gold sells at two-thousand-471-dollars-80-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 80-dollars-74-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….