News 09:00

BULLETIN 30 April 9 am

Good morning. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# Moody’s Investors Service SA is leaving South Africa
# The DA is encouraged by the progress with South African border security
# And, Donald Trump says negotiations to end the war with Iran are currently happening telephonically

# The Prudential Authority of South Africa says it will be derecognising Moody’s Investors Service South Africa as an eligible external credit assessment institution. This follows the Financial Sector Conduct Authority cancelling Moody’s registration earlier this month, after it had voluntarily renounced its registration in the country. This move will not impact South Africa’s sovereign rating, which is assigned by the global entity Moody’s Investors Service. The authority says Moody’s is still required to ensure continued compliance in its last 24 months in the country before it is officially removed.

# The DA says it supports reforms that secure South Africa’s borders while facilitating trade and economic growth. Recently, over 600-thousand individuals have been deported from the country, for either attempting to illegally enter South Africa, or from the interior of the country. The DA’s Adrian Roos says efficient borders are not only a security imperative but an economic necessity, with delays at ports of entry historically costing South Africa billions in lost trade and reduced competitiveness:

# The United Africans Transformation has expressed concern about allegations of governance failures in the City of Tshwane. This after Defenders of the People’s councillor Rufus Mphahlele was accused of involvement in alleged irregular tender dealings as well as poor attendance at council meetings. The party’s Mighty Mabule calls for Mphahlele’s immediate suspension while an independent investigation is carried out:

# US president Donald Trump says the negotiations to end the war with Iran are currently happening telephonically, citing the long travel hours required to send a delegation to Islamabad, Pakistan. According to reports, Pakistani mediators could receive Iran’s revised peace proposal by today, which will include de-escalation in the Gulf without immediately placing restraints on its nuclear programme. Speaking at the White House, Trump reiterated that there will never be a deal unless Iran agrees not to have a nuclear weapon:

# Soccer: Arsenal and Atlético Madrid played to a 1-1 draw in the first leg of their Champions League semifinal in Madrid. Viktor Gyökeres’ first-half penalty gave the Gunners the lead. Atletico responded through Julian Alvarez’s penalty. Arsenal could have taken the lead again in the 78th minute after referee Danny Makkelie awarded a penalty when David Hancko caught Eberechi Eze. However, the decision was overturned following a video assistant referee check, which deemed the contact insufficient. The winner will face Bayern Munich or Paris Saint-Germain in the final.

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 16-rand-89-cents and the euro at 19-rand-69-cents. One British pound costs 22-rand-74-cents, and Bitcoin trades at 75-thousand-684-dollars. Gold sells at four-thousand-548-dollars-10-cents a fine ounce, and Brent crude oil is quoted at 112-dollars-34-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….