News 11:00

BULLETIN 1 October 11 am

Good morning. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# The Paris prosecutor’s office has launched an investigation into Nathi Mthethwa’s death
# The US government has shut down as senators have failed to pass a last-minute funding bill
# And rugby: Rassie Erasmus is pleased with the evolution of the squad

# French authorities have launched an investigation into the death of South Africa’s ambassador to France, Nathi Mthethwa. He was found dead outside the Hyatt Hotel yesterday after being reported missing on Monday. Paris prosecutor Laure Beccuau says Mthethwa’s room window on the 22nd floor had been forced open with scissors that were left at the scene. She says investigators did not find any signs of a struggle or evidence that drugs or medication had been involved. Beccuau says initial investigations suggest that this may have been a deliberate act.

# The FNB-Bureau for Economic Research’s Civil Confidence Index rose to 43 in the third quarter, up from 41. FNB economist Siphamandla Mkhwanazi says the rise in sentiment comes despite weaker construction activity, with nearly 55-percent of respondents unhappy with business conditions. He adds that base effects likely explain the dip in activity, but the sector remains on track for a stronger 2025 than the 6.1-percent contraction of 2024:

# Corruption Watch says it has become clear that syndicates involving officials and service providers have been able to continue their looting with no consequences. This follows the Special Investigating Unit’s investigation into Tembisa Hospital in Gauteng, which uncovered coordinated syndicates responsible for the looting of over two-billion-rand. Corruption Watch says the mismanagement of resources severely impacts the well-being of all residents and erodes the delivery of critical services, while poor governance undermines the effectiveness of systems that were put in place to prevent corruption.

Moving abroad:

# The US government has shut down for the first time in nearly seven years after senators failed to pass a last-minute funding bill. Congressional Democrats refused to support a Republican funding package unless they won a series of concessions centred on healthcare. The shutdown is the first since a 35-day closure that began in December 2018 and extended into the new year during president Donald Trump’s first term. House speaker Mike Johnson says Democrats are fully to blame for this shutdown:

# Rugby: Springbok coach Rassie Erasmus is pleased with how the squad has evolved this year, especially in terms of depth and the different strengths they have. None of the 36 players he has used in this year’s Rugby Championship have been on the pitch for the entire 400 minutes of the five rounds. The Boks have had 28 different try scorers this year. Erasmus says the interchangeability of combinations is still a work in progress:

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 17-rand-24-cents and the euro at 20-rand-29-cents. One British pound costs 23-rand-22-cents and Bitcoin trades at 114-thousand-377-dollars. Gold sells at three-thousand-861-dollars-15-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 66-dollars-22-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….