News 12:00

BULLETIN 20 August 12 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# Rand Mutual Assurance says the 30-percent US tariffs have put the SA economy under immense pressure
# Minister George says South Africa is committed to fighting against international wildlife crime
# And skibidi and delulu are among six-thousand new words added to the online Cambridge Dictionary

# Rand Mutual Assurance says the South African economy is under pressure as a result of the newly introduced 30-percent tariff on goods exported to the US. According to the latest macroeconomic analysis by multinational accounting giant EY, the country could shed up to 100-thousand jobs due to the tariffs. RMA’s Gopolang Peme says reduced global demand, supply chain disruptions and strained trade relationships with key partners can have a knock-on effect on South Africa’s export-heavy sectors, including mining and automotive.

# Parliament has confirmed it will host the 11th G20 parliamentary speakers’ summit in Kleinmond in the Western Cape from 29 September to 3 October. The summit, themed ‘Harnessing parliamentary diplomacy for the realisation of global solidarity, equality and sustainability,’ will also feature the P20 women and young parliamentarians’ meetings. South Africa, holding the G20 presidency, aims to use the platform to strengthen partnerships and promote global accountability.

# Minister of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment, Dion George, says the dismantling of a major transnational rhino horn trafficking network is a decisive victory. Six alleged members of a syndicate linked to a fraudulent scheme involving 964 rhino horns worth millions of rand, destined for illegal markets in Southeast Asia, have been arrested. George says the suspects defrauded the department by securing permits under false pretences to buy and sell rhino horns domestically, while funnelling them into illegal international markets:

# Rugby: New Zealand will be without Patrick Tuipulotu and Anton Lienert-Brown for their second Rugby Championship match against Argentina in Buenos Aires on Saturday. Tuipulotu sustained a facial injury in their 41-24 victory against the Pumas last weekend. The 56-Test veteran is expected to be sidelined for around six-weeks. Lienert-Brown, who sustained a head knock, is undergoing concussion protocols to determine his return to action. All Blacks coach Scott Robertson has admitted that losing such experienced players is a setback for his team.

# The financial indicators: The dollar trades at 17-rand-69-cents and the euro at 20-rand-60-cents. One British pound costs 23-rand-89-cents and Bitcoin trades at 113-thousand-806-dollars. Gold sells at three-thousand-322-dollars-10-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 65-dollars-94-cents a barrel. 

# And finally: The Cambridge Dictionary has added six-thousand new words to its online edition over the past year. These include TikTok trends and social media terms like skibidi, delulu and tradwife. The words have grown in use across social and mainstream media and beyond, linked to celebrities and influencers such as Kim Kardashian. Cambridge Dictionary’s publishing manager, Wendalyn Nichols, told Sky News they only add words they think will have linguistic staying power:

Stay tuned for more news………….