News 07:00

BULLETIN 18 February 7 am

Good morning. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# The deputy minister of Trade and Industry defends the government’s trade strategy
# Julius Malema launches a scathing attack on Ramaphosa
# And, Allianz Trade maintains South Africa’s stable risk rating

# Deputy minister of Trade, Industry and Competition, Zuko Godlimpi, says government’s trade strategy is not set on announcements, it is action-oriented to defend, diversify and industrialise through trade. He was speaking at the State of the Nation Address debate in the National Assembly on Tuesday. Godlimpi says the Southern African Customs Union negotiations with India are progressing towards a potential trade agreement, which will open access to a market of 1.4 billion people:

# EEF leader Julius Malema has criticised president Cyril Ramaphosa’s leadership, blaming the ANC for corruption and syndicate infiltration. Malema said during the state of the nation debate that crime remains a national crisis, warning that electricity and water challenges are far from over, especially in poorer communities. He accused Ramaphosa of selling the country’s resources to the private sector and failing to deliver on promises such as bullet trains and smart cities:

# Trade credit insurer Allianz Trade has maintained South Africa’s stable risk rating in its latest Country Risk Atlas. The group expects GDP growth of 1.3-percent this year and 1.5-percent in 2027, supported by infrastructure and energy reforms. It cites the government of national unity’s pro-growth stance and the South African Reserve Bank’s three-percent inflation target as positives. While the rand has strengthened and South Africa exited the Financial Action Task Force grey list, high unemployment and debt sustainability risks remain concerns.

# The Western Cape Education Department says it has made significant inroads in reducing the number of learners on placement lists. This is despite receiving an alarming number of extremely late applications this year. The department’s spokesperson, Bronagh Casey, says they received over 26-thousand extremely late applications in Grade R. 1 and 8 alone since 1st January, with over two-thousand-500 applications received between 2nd February and 11 February:

# Iran’s Foreign minister, Abbas Araqchi, says the second round of talks with the US in Geneva, Switzerland, has yielded an agreement on guiding principles for future talks. Yesterday’s talks were to discuss the terms for Tehran constraining its nuclear programme under the supervision of the United Nations nuclear weapons inspectorate. Araqchi says he believes that the US position on the nuclear issue has moved towards a more realistic one. He adds that overall, the meeting was constructive, with good progress being made.

# Rugby: Scotland could be without the services of three players in Saturday’s Six Nations match against Wales in Cardiff. Flanker Jamie Ritchie faces a lengthy spell on the sidelines after breaking a shin bone against England last weekend and is definitely out, while there is still uncertainty over the fitness of eighthman Jack Dempsey and back player Jamie Dobie. Coach Gregor Townsend is due to name his team tomorrow. Scotland is currently second on the log behind France after losing to Italy and defeating England.

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 16-rand-1-cents and the euro at 18-rand-97-cents. One British pound costs 21-rand-71-cents and Bitcoin trades at 66-thousand-994-dollars. Gold sells at four-thousand-888-dollars-68-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 66-dollars-92-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….