News 06:00

BULLETIN 14 March 6 am

Good morning. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# President Ramaphosa says South Africa and the European Union will strengthen their economic ties
# The DA accuses the ANC of using VAT to cover its corruption costs
# And Donald Trump threatens a 200-percent tariff on French liquor imports

# President Cyril Ramaphosa says that as one of South Africa’s most important trade and investment partners, the European Union can play a catalytic role in unleashing the economy’s productive capacity. He co-chaired the 8th South Africa–European Union Summit in Cape Town on Thursday. Ramaphosa says South Africa and the EU have agreed on the need to strengthen economic cooperation and resolve challenges in trade relations:

Meanwhile, the European Union has announced an investment package of more than 90-billion-rand for South Africa, focusing on clean energy and vaccine manufacturing. The announcement comes as South Africa and the EU navigate shifting US trade policies under president Donald Trump, including tariffs on steel, aluminium, and potentially European wine. EU chief Ursula von der Leyen emphasised the EU’s commitment to strengthening supply chains and supporting local industries rather than simply extracting resources:

# The DA has accused the ANC of using the VAT increase to cover the costs of corruption. The party argues that the government is pushing the burden onto South African citizens by raising VAT while continuing to inflate public sector salaries. The DA’s Ashor Sarupen says they believe the additional revenue from VAT will not address the country’s economic needs but instead cover up financial mismanagement and corruption:

# The City of Johannesburg finally passed its adjustment budget for 2024/2025 on Thursday, after the council’s first attempt failed in February when the sitting collapsed. A total of 105 councillors, including those from the DA and ActionSA, rejected the proposed budget, while 138 councillors from the ANC-led government of local unity approved it. The metro made adjustments of 1.2-billion-rand to its total revenue, bringing its annual budget to more than 77-billion-rand. The metro says it remains steadfast in its mission to ensure financial stability.

# US President Donald Trump has threatened to impose 200-percent tariffs on wine, champagne and other alcoholic products from France and other European Union countries in retaliation against the bloc’s planned levies on US-produced whiskey. Trump has launched trade wars against competitors and partners alike since taking office. The European Union unveiled tariffs countering US moves on steel and aluminum, hitting some US goods in stages from April. Trump renewed his criticism of the bloc, singling out a 50-percent levy on US whiskey as being “nasty.”

# Rugby: France’s head coach, Fabien Galthie, has given Maxime Lucu injured captain Antoine Dupont’s number nine jersey for tomorrow’s Six Nations clash with Scotland in Paris. He says it was impossible to drop the 32-year-old after he impressed against Ireland last week when he replaced Dupont before halftime. Experienced Gael Fickou will play centre in Pierre-Louis Barassi’s place in the only other change to the team that potentially ended the Irish’s hope for a third consecutive title.

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 18-rand-27-cents and the euro at 19-rand-83-cents. One British pound costs 23-rand-68-cents and Bitcoin trades at 81-thousand-88-dollar-20-cents. Gold sells at two-thousand-987-dollars-50-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 70-dollars-18-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….