News 15:00

BULLETIN 1 November 3 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# President Cyril Ramaphosa calls for better alignment between national and provincial government priorities
# Fuel prices are expected to rise across all grades next week
# And golf: The Gary and Vivienne Player Invitational moves to Sun City

# President Cyril Ramaphosa says national and provincial governments must work together better. In a meeting with the Limpopo executive council, he announced a new initiative for closer collaboration to improve development and governance. Ramaphosa encourages provinces to use their strengths in agriculture and tourism to boost growth and address issues like electricity and water supply:

# The Automobile Association warns motorists to prepare for higher fuel prices this month. Current data from the Central Energy Fund indicates increases across all fuel grades, with 93-octane petrol rising by 14-cents a litre and 95-octane petrol by 25-cents per litre. Diesel is expected to increase by about 22-cents per litre, while illuminating paraffin will rise by 21-cents a litre. AA spokesperson Eleanor Mavimbela, advises consumers to budget accordingly and monitor their fuel usage:

# The Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa has refurbished 266 of 463 vandalised railway stations since 2021 after severe looting and damage. Prasa received over 38-billion-rand to revive rail services. Spokesperson Andiswa Makanda revealed that a corridor-by-corridor strategy was adopted, prioritising lines with high passenger demand and minimal damage. For commuter safety, Prasa has increased station and train security through partnerships with the police and enhanced technology.

# China says growing ties between Pyongyang and Moscow were not its concern, after the United States warned up to eight-thousand North Korean troops have reached Russia’s border region, trained and ready for combat with Ukraine. China’s foreign ministry says North Korea and Russia are two independent sovereign states and how they develop bilateral relations is their own matter. Citing US intelligence, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said that North Korean troops believed to be in Russia have made their way to the Kursk border region.

# Golf: The Gary and Vivienne Player Invitational will be played at the Gary Player Country Club at Sun City in North West for the first time. It moves from the Lost City which didn’t receive the required amount of rain. The event will boast a very strong field consisting of sports stars, business leaders and celebrities. Gary Player expects a phenomenal weekend on the fairways of one of the top courses in Africa, where the annual Nedbank Challenge will take place early next month.

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 17-rand-63-cents and the euro at 19-rand-15-cents. One British pound costs 22-rand-76-cents and Bitcoin trades at 69-thousand-891-dollars-80-cents. Gold sells at two-thousand-752-dollars-43-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 72-dollars-55-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….