News 14:00

BULLETIN 11 December 2 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# Annual inflation edges up to 2.9-percent in November
# Carl Niehaus labels former EFF leaders as traitors ahead of its national conference
# And tennis: Jannik Sinner is confident he won’t be banned over his positive doping test

# Annual inflation increased to 2.9-percent last month, slightly higher than October’s 2.8-percent. However, food inflation dropped to its lowest in 14-years, with prices for items like vegetables, bread, and dairy falling. Fuel prices increased by 0.9-percent, while restaurants and hotels saw a 5.9-percent rise in costs. Statistics South Africa’s Patrick Kelly says the poorest households continue to experience the highest inflation at 3.8-percent, while the wealthiest saw a rate of three-percent:

# EFF member of Parliament Carl Niehaus has branded members who left for the MK Party as traitors and warned they will face challenges in the Jacob Zuma-led party. Niehaus praised the EFF’s unity as it prepares for its national conference at Nasrec this weekend. Meanwhile EFF treasurer Omphile Maotwe confirmed readiness, emphasising the party’s strength despite notable exits. She says delegates will elect new leadership and debate policy, ensuring the EFF remains a unified force.

# The DA says systemic changes are needed from government to truly address gender-based violence and femicide. The party is disappointed that the 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence campaign was not used to bring the National Council against Gender-Based Violence and Femicide into working force, so that it could start its critical work. The DA’s Karabo Khakhau says minister of Women and Children, Sindisiwe Chikunga, has neither acted to finance nor resource the council:

# Tennis: World number one Jannik Sinner says he is confident he will avoid suspension over a positive doping test. It was revealed in August he tested positive for minute traces of a banned substance, but the International Tennis Integrity Acency decided not to ban him. He is now awaiting the World Anti-doping Agency’s appeal. The Italian says the matter gave him sleepless nights, but also showed him who his real friends were. Sinner nonetheless crowned a brilliant year by winning the ATP Finals.

# The financial indicators: The dollar trades at 17-rand-86-cents and the euro at 18-rand-75-cents. One British pound costs 22-rand-73-cents and Bitcoin trades at 98-thousand-63-dollars. Gold sells at two-thousand-698-dollars-8-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 72-dollars-76-cents a barrel.

# And finally: The number of leopards has tripled in the world’s largest conservation area, the Kafue National Park in Zambia. There are currently 4.4 leopards per 100 square kilometres in the park, which uses camera trap surveys, smarter anti-poaching patrols and GPS-tagging of white-backed vultures to act as an early-warning system for potential poaching activity. This has also lead to a reversal of the decline in the lion population. The International Union for Conservation of Nature lists leopards as vulnerable on its red list of threatened species.

Stay tuned for more news………….