News 07:00

BULLETIN 17 April 7 am

Good morning. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# The Presidency says it has not received objections to the appointment of Mcebisi Jonas
# AfriForum continues its legal battle against racist water rights
# And the World Trade Organisation warns global trade will decline this year

# The Presidency says it has not received any communication from US president Donald Trump’s administration objecting to the appointment of  Mcebisi Jonas as special envoy to America. In 2020, the former deputy minister of Finance labelled Trump racist, homophobic, and narcissistic. Presidential spokesperson, Vincent Magwenya, says comments made by Jonas about Trump were made in his personal capacity, and that political issues such as the tariff situation should be kept separate from personal opinions:

# AfriForum has filed an appeal against the Department of Water and Sanitation’s decision to block the transfer of irrigation water rights from a black farmer to a white farmer. The department argues the move contradicts its transformation goals. AfriForum’s Marais de Vaal insists that race should not be the sole factor in water licence decisions and warns that the livelihoods of rural workers are at risk:

# The Department of Health is urging Easter travelers to remain vigilant as malaria cases rise in Limpopo, Mpumalanga, and KwaZulu-Natal. The department’s spokesperson Foster Mohale also warned of possible cross-border transmission. Mohale has advised travelers to take malaria prophylaxis, use repellents, and sleep under bed nets. He has encouraged early testing and treatment to prevent further spread of the disease:

# The ANC in KwaZulu-Natal says recent developments in the government of national unity regarding the budget impasse will not affect the coalition in the province. The ANC, DA, and IFP are collectively running the province. However, some concerns should the GNU collapse, there would be a risk of handing the province to the MK Party, which holds the largest share of the votes. KZN provincial task team co-ordinator, Mike Mabuyakhulu, says they have conflict resolution mechanisms that would ensure disagreements would not destroy the coalition.

# The World Trade Organisation has warned that US President Donald Trump’s sweeping global tariffs will reverse international trade this year. A baseline tariff of ten-percent on almost all imports to the US kicked in on April 5th, although some countries and goods are exempt. The WTO previously expected global goods trade to expand by 2.7-percent this year, but it now forecasts it will fall by 0.2-percent. The organisation says trade policy uncertainty can dampen business confidence, reduce business investment, and thereby impair economic growth.

# Commonwealth Games: Seven countries confirmed interest in hosting the event in 2030 or 2034, allaying fears the age-old competition will end with next year’s Games in Glasgow. The Scottish city stepped in last year after the Australian state of Victoria withdrew as host for financial reasons. Glasgow’s offer of a scaled-back event reportedly attracted interest from other potential hosts because of the lessened cost. The bids will be examined for feasibility over the next five months, and the preferred bidder for 2030 should be announced in November.

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 18-rand-86-cents and the euro at 21-rand-43-cents. One British pound costs 24-rand-91-cents and Bitcoin trades at 84-thousand-459-dollar-10-cents. Gold sells at three-thousand-340-dollars-3-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 65-dollars-48-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….