News 08:00

BULLETIN 9 April 8 am

Good morning. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# President Ramaphosa says the CSIR is a South African success story
# Three major legal firms join the fight against the government’s empowerment codes
# And Donald Trump slaps China with 104-percent tariffs

# President Cyril Ramaphosa says the work being done by the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research is firmly aligned to government’s priorities of driving inclusive growth and job creation. He visited the CSIR facilities, an entity of the Department of Science, Technology and Innovation in Pretoria on Tuesday. The CSIR marks 80 years of innovation, advancement, and progress. Rampahosa says the CSIR must be at the forefront of developing and patenting solutions that contribute to the upliftment of humankind:

# Three of South Africa’s major legal firms have joined Norton Rose Fulbright’s court challenge against the government’s legal sector black economic empowerment codes. The Department of Trade, Industry and Competition published the sector codes in September last year. They include that 50-percent of black legal practitioners should have ownership, voting rights, and positions in executive management in the next five years. Bowmen, Webber Wentzel, and Werksmans firms argue that the implementation of the codes could cause them to lose billions in contracts with big banks and the public sector.

# The Gauteng portfolio committee on Community Safety has requested a formal report from provincial Police Commissioner, Tommy Mthombeni, on the status and progress of the investigations into taxi-related killings. This comes after three members of the Witwatersrand African Taxi Association were shot and killed in Soweto on Monday morning. In March alone, eleven taxi operators were killed in Katlehong, outside Germiston in Johannesburg. Committee chairperson, Bandile Masuku, says police must intensify intelligence-led operations, and swift arrests to dismantle the criminal elements fuelling the violence.

# The White House has confirmed that the US will hit Chinese imports with 104-percent tariffs starting today after Beijing refused to withdraw its retaliatory tariff. America will add an extra 50-percent on tariffs against China plus an initial 20-percent that was supplemented by 34-percent reciprocal levies. China has refused to bow to what it called blackmail by the US. White House Press Secretary, Karoline Leavitt, says Trump has instructed his trade team to make tailor-made deals with countries that want to negotiate: 

# Soccer: Banyana Banyana came from a goal down to register a 2-1 victory against Malawi in their second friendly international at the Lucas Moripe Stadium in Pretoria. South Africa beat the Scorchers 3-0 on Saturday. Goals from Hildah Magaia and Amogelang Motau earned the win for Desiree Ellis’s team. Banyana Banyana is preparing for the Women’s Africa Cup of Nations in Morocco in July. Ellis says there are still areas they need to improve on ahead of WAFCON:

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 19-rand-71-cents and the euro at 21-rand-73-cents. One British pound costs 25-rand-27-cents and Bitcoin trades at 75-thousand-664-dollars. Gold sells at three-thousand-and-5-dollars-86-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 60-dollars-60-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….