News 15:00

BULLETIN 21 November 3 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# An analyst warns the SA-US tensions may impact key trade talks
# AfriForum launches a safety guide for international visitors ahead of the G20 summit
# And cricket: Rabada will also miss South Africa’s second Test against India

# Trade relations between South Africa and the US could be severely affected as the handing over of the G20 presidency to the US hangs in the balance. US president Donald Trump announced he will send a junior embassy representative to receive the presidency, but president Cyril Ramaphosa has rejected the move. Speaking to SABC News, University of Johannesburg’s analyst Oscar van Heerden warns major issues hang in the balance, including the 30-percent tariff hikes:

Deputy president Paul Mashatile is meanwhile leading South Africa’s delegation to the South Africa–Vietnam Business Forum in Sandton, Johannesburg, alongside a bilateral meeting with Vietnamese prime minister Pham Minh Chinh. The forum coincides with Vietnam’s participation in the G20 summit. The delegation arrived in Johannesburg this morning. The engagement follows president Cyril Ramaphosa’s recent state visit to Hanoi, strengthening ties with Vietnam, whose economy grew by 7.09-percent last year. Over 180 South African companies will attend the forum, with several memorandums of understanding expected to be signed.

AfriForum’s Community Safety division has released a comprehensive safety guide for international visitors, journalists and delegates attending the G20 leaders’ summit in South Africa. The guide, titled Staying Safe in South Africa, equips foreign visitors with practical tools to navigate South Africa’s uniquely high-risk crime environment. According to AfriForum, international visitors often underestimate the level of violent and opportunistic crime in the country, making them highly vulnerable. AfriForum’s Jacques Broodryk says the organisation’s goal is not to scare visitors, but to empower them.

# Standard Bank says the South African Reserve Bank’s decision to cut the repo rate by 25 basis points to 6.75 percent was widely expected. The bank warns the full effect of the rate cuts on the economy, particularly consumer spending, will only be felt over the next 12 to 18 months. The bank’s Elna Moolman says further interest rate relief may follow next year, depending on inflation and food costs:

# Cricket: Proteas fast bowler Kagiso Rabada will also miss the second Test against India with a rib injury that kept him out of the opener in Kolkata. He is replaced by Lungi Ngidi for the encounter, starting in Guwahati tomorrow morning. Captain Temba Bavuma says the mood in the camp is buoyant after their 30-run victory at Eden Gardens, their first in India since 2010, and with the chance of winning a series in the country for the first time since Hansie Cronjé’s team triumphed in 2000.

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 17-rand-34-cents and the euro at 19-rand-98-cents. One British pound costs 22-rand-66-cents and Bitcoin trades at 82-thousand-877-dollars. Gold sells at four-thousand-and-41-dollars-34-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 61-dollars-76-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….