News 06:00

BULLETIN 26 September 6 am

Good morning. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# President Ramaphosa says South Africa’s G20 presidency has exceeded expectations
# The Agriculture minister says China could soon open its doors to cherry and blueberry exports
# And rugby: The United Rugby Championship kicks off for the four South African teams

# President Cyril Ramaphosa says the world looks to the G20 as the premier forum for international economic cooperation, providing leadership in addressing urgent challenges. He participated in the G20 Foreign Ministers’ meeting at the United Nations in New York on Thursday. Ramaphosa says South Africa’s G20 presidency has exceeded expectations, with even initially doubtful countries recognising the impact and significance of the issues placed on the global agenda:

Ramaphosa also says the international community today is confronting many challenges, with the promise of sustainable development getting further out of reach. Ramaphosa says more than 85-percent of the Sustainable Development Goals are currently off track, with setbacks particularly acute in fighting hunger, extreme poverty, and rising inequality:

# Agriculture minister John Steenhuisen says South Africa is on the verge of unlocking new markets for cherries and blueberries, with China showing promising signs of approval. Speaking at the International Berry Organisation conference in Cape Town, Steenhuisen said talks are also advancing with Thailand and South Korea. At the same time, exports to the Middle East and Asia continue to grow. Despite black frost wiping out up to 70-percent of cultivars this season, exports still rose by seven-percent to more than 22-thousand tonnes.

# The head of the South African Police Service’s legal division, Margaretha van Rooyen, has criticised the Parliament’s portfolio committee on Police for failing to act on KwaZulu-Natal police commissioner Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi’s complaints before his July media briefing. Van Rooyen told the Madlanga commission in Pretoria that timely intervention is crucial to ensure police accountability and prevent unlawful operational decisions, like the disbandment of the political killings task team:

# The White House has told its agencies to prepare for mass firings if Congress does not avert a government shutdown next week. In a memo obtained by US media, the Office of Budget and Management warned of permanent firings specifically for federal programmes, projects and activities that have no alternative funding sources and are “not consistent with the President’s priorities”. Democrats are now accusing the White House of using intimidation tactics. Since taking office, Trump has already fired thousands of federal workers through his cost-cutting initiative with the Department of Government Efficiency.

# Rugby: The United Rugby Championship returns today for its fifth edition. The four South African franchises are without a number of Springboks. The Stormers and Bulls kick off their campaigns at home in Cape Town and Pretoria, while the Sharks are in Scotland, and the Lions start their season in Wales. At 7 pm tonight, the Stormers face defending champions, Leinster, while the Sharks face Glasgow Warriors at 9.05 pm. In Saturday’s matches, the Bulls kick off at 2 pm against the Ospreys, and the Lions face Cardiff at 8.45 pm.

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 17-rand-41-cents and the euro at 20-rand-31-cents. One British pound costs 23-rand-22-cents and Bitcoin trades at 109-thousand-661-dollars. Gold sells at three-thousand-748-dollars-73-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 68-dollars-63-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….