News 08:00

BULLETIN 6 August 8 am

Good morning. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# The government says it’s working to broaden South Africa’s trade architecture
# The police record significant victories against organised crime
# And the US Coast Guard says the Titan submersible disaster was preventable

# Government says South Africa remains committed to a principled and diplomatic resolution to the 30-percent tariff hike on exports to the US in a bid to secure a mutually beneficial trade agreement. America is South Africa’s third-largest trading partner, accounting for 7.5-percent of the country’s global exports. Government spokesperson, Nonkululeko Mtshali, says while working on deepening US ties, South Africa continues to broaden its global trade architecture:

# The South African Police Service says it recorded significant victories against organised crime and high-impact offences between the 27th of July and August 2nd. Intelligence-led and coordinated operations across provinces led to the arrest of 17-thousand-and-54 suspects. Police spokesperson, Vincent Mukhathi, says two-thousand-911 wanted suspects were arrested. He says 179 suspects, mostly in KwaZulu-Natal and Gauteng, were arrested for murder:

# The DA in Gauteng has accused premier Panyaza Lesufi of backtracking on the removal of Health Department head, Lesiba Malotana. The premier has stated that he will decide on Malotana’s future once the lifestyle audit on him has been completed, adding that the evidence he has now is insufficient. The DA’s Jack Bloom says Lesufi should effectively cease to be premier if he is unable to remove Malotana, who seems to enjoy very high-level political protection:

# The US Coast Guard’s Marine Board of Investigation has found that the deadly implosion of OceanGate’s Titan submersible was preventable. The submersible disappeared in the Atlantic Ocean while descending to the wreckage of the Titanic in June 2023. It imploded 90-minutes into the dive, leading to the deaths of all five people on board, including OceanGate CEO Stockton Rush. A damning 335-page report found that the submersible’s design, certification, maintenance, and inspection process were all inadequate. Investigators concluded Rush had exhibited negligence that contributed to the deaths of four people. 

# Cricket: The extent of English allrounder Chris Woakes’s injury should be clear soon after his heroic innings in the fifth Test against India in London. He injured his left shoulder on the first day at the Oval, but had to bat on the final day to try and win the match. Team-mate Gus Atkinson protected him from batting, but they lost by six runs. Head coach Brendon McCullum describes Woakes’s contribution as very brave, despite the loss that caused the series to end in a draw.

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 17-rand-86-cents and the euro at 20-rand-68-cents. One British pound costs 23-rand-77-cents and Bitcoin trades at 113-thousand-431-dollars. Gold sells at three-thousand-374-dollars-79-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 67-dollars-79-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….