News 12:00

BULLETIN 15 May 12 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# Minister Steenhuisen says South Africa overtaking citrus export giant Spain is no easy feat
# Heavy rain tops up Cape Town’s dam levels
# And rugby: There is much to play for in the final group round of the United Rugby Championship

# Minister of Agriculture John Steenhuisen says South Africa’s production growth must be met with intensified diplomacy and infrastructure support. The country has officially overtaken Spain as the world’s largest exporter of citrus by volume, with 2.9 million tons exported last year. This shift occurred as Spanish producers navigated increasingly complex climatic conditions. The department’s spokesperson, Joylene van Wyk, says South Africa and Spain play complementary roles in the global market:

# Forum for South Africa says the dismissal of Sisisi Tolashe as minister of Social Development must serve as a clear message to public representatives that they are not shielded from accountability. Tolashe faces allegations involving appointments, and more recently, a donation of cars meant for the ANC Women’s League, which she gave to her children. FOSA leader Tebogo Mashilompane says individuals who place personal interests above South Africa will ultimately face the consequences:

# The City of Cape Town says following heavy rain this week, dam levels have increased by 12.4-percent to 61.2-percent compared to last week. At the same time, water usage has decreased to 831 million litres a day from 874 last week. Mayoral committee member for Water and Sanitation, Zahid Badoodien, says water in the dams needs to last until this time next year, as the metro cannot depend on unpredictable winter rainfall:

Moving abroad:

# The Republican-led US House of Representatives has rejected a Democratic-led resolution to block president Donald Trump from taking military action against Iran without congressional approval. The house voted 212 to 212, meaning it failed because it needed a majority to pass. This is the third vote this year on an Iranian war powers resolution. Democrats have repeatedly called ​on Trump to ⁠come to Congress for authorisation to use military force, emphasising the Constitution says only the legislature, not the president, can declare war.

# Rugby: The final group round of the United Rugby Championship has arrived, with much to play for this weekend. The top-two teams, Glasgow Warriors and the Stormers, have already clinched home quarterfinals, while seven teams will fight it out for the remaining six places. The Stormers play Cardiff in Wales tomorrow, the fourth-placed Bulls face Benetton in Pretoria, and the fifth-placed Lions face Munster in Limerick. The Sharks, who are already out of contention in tenth position, will host Zebre in Durban.

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 16-rand-64-cents and the euro at 19-rand-36-cents. One British pound costs 22-rand-22-cents and Bitcoin trades at 80-thousand-613-dollars. Gold sells at four-thousand-559-dollars-30-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 105-dollars-78-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….