News 07:00

BULLETIN 19 March 7 am

Good morning. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# Moody’s expects the government to reach a compromise on the budget
# Minister Ramokgopa says the era of double-digit tariff increases is over
# And Vladimir Putin says Western dominance is slipping away

# Ratings agency Moody’s expects the government of national unity to reach a compromise that will allow for the passing of the budget. Some parties including the DA have rejected the amended budget, despite Finance minister Enoch Godongwana scaling back the size of the proposed value-added tax hike. Parliament’s portfolio committees are reviewing the budget. Moody’s says continued friction within government means there may still be some changes to fiscal measures before Parliament approves the budget, however, it expects the budget’s overall focus on fiscal consolidation to remain.

# Electricity minister Kgosientsho Ramokgopa says Eskom is aware that it cannot increase electricity tariffs as it wants because competition is intensifying in the industry. The National Energy Regulator has approved the Eskom retail tariffs and structural adjustment for 2025, which will see prices increased by 12.74-percent from April. The regulator has also approved the municipal tariff increase of at least 11.32-percent from July. Ramokgopa says Nersa had a balancing act of assisting Eskom but also protecting customers:

# The ANC and the South African Communist Party have committed to renewing their alliance and deepening the national democratic revolution. During a bilateral meeting, party leader Cyril Ramaphosa and SACP general secretary Solly Mapaila agreed to work together on economic and social policies, with a focus on a more radical phase of the revolution. SACP’s Alex Mashilo said both parties pledged to work towards a non-racial, non-sexist South Africa, while also standing against growing right-wing forces globally.

# The EFF in Gauteng has welcomed the 2025/2026 budget tabled by Finance MEC Lebogang Maile but has expressed concern that the allocated funds may not be enough to address challenges. The total budget is 171.5-billion-rand. The ANC currently leads a minority coalition government and will need the support of other parties to pass the budget. The EFF’s Moshe Koma, says it will continue to engage with the provincial leadership to ensure the rest of their submission becomes a reality:

# Russian President Vladimir Putin says the West would try to undermine Russia regardless of whether it lifted sanctions, telling business leaders in Moscow they should look elsewhere to invest. Delivering a broadly anti-Western speech ahead of a crunch phone call with US counterpart Donald Trump, Putin said Western dominance was “slipping away”. Western countries introduced sweeping sanctions on Russia in response to its full-scale military offensive against Ukraine in February 2022, restrictions that the Kremlin has called an “illegal” attempt to destroy its economy.

# Rugby: All Blacks head coach Scott Robertson has made peace with New Zealand Rugby’s strict eligibility policy after initially pushing to select overseas-based players. The union limits playing for the national team to players based in the country to bolster domestic competitions, although some long-serving All Blacks are allowed short spells with overseas clubs while on sabbaticals. Robertson says the policy is flexible enough to give him a strong squad, and he must make sure they can continue the flow of quality professional players.

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 18-rand-12-cents and the euro at 19-rand-82-cents. One British pound costs 23-rand-55-cents and Bitcoin trades at 82-thousand-863-dollar-90-cents. Gold sells at three-thousand-29-dollars-5-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 70-dollars-26-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….