News 09:00

BULLETIN 15 October 9 am

Good morning. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# Green Connection welcomes the end to the controversial Karpowership deal
# The rise in digital banking in South Africa has resulted in job cuts
# And the World Health Organisation approves Mpox vaccine for adolescents

# The Green Connection says it is pleased that the controversial Karpowership deal with South Africa is no longer proceeding. Earlier this year, Eskom pulled the plug on Karpowership, announcing that it would no longer reserve the transmission capacity initially set aside for the Turkish company. The deal, worth more than 200-billion-rand, would have seen Karpowership supplying one-thousand-220-negawatts of power. Green Connection’s, Liziwe McDaid, says they have been concerned about the environmental risks the floating power plants pose to marine ecosystems:

# A widespread shift toward digital banking has forced banks to recalibrate their operations, leading to the loss of approximately seven-thousand jobs. Standard Bank alone reported a 30-percent increase in online transactions in the first half of the year. According to Business Tech, Absa reduced its staff from 28-thousand-595 in 2019 to 27-thousand-and-42 this year, while Nedbank has seen its workforce drop by over three-thousand. Banks are trying to balance digital innovation with maintaining a physical presence to meet the diverse needs of their customers.

# The Freedom Front Plus has welcomed the response protocol agreement entered into by the Ekurhuleni Metro and the Public Protector, to address unresolved service delivery problems. In terms of the agreement, complaints and allegations relating to maladministration, corruption and other forms of misconduct can be reported to the Public Protector. FF Plus’, Jennifer Glover, says by signing the agreement, the City Manager bound the metro to effective management and service delivery:

# The World Health Organisation has approved Bavarian Nordic’s Mpox vaccine, Jynneos, for adolescents aged 12 to 17. According to WHO, this vulnerable group faces heightened risks during outbreaks. The pre-qualification follows earlier approval for adult use in September. WHO declared Mpox a global health emergency in August after new infections spread from the Democratic Republic of Congo. Bavarian Nordic says it plans clinical trials for younger children, while other vaccines, like Japan’s LC16, are already available for pediatric use.

# Rugby: The French Rugby Federation, National Rugby League, and players’ union Provale have expressed firm opposition to the proposed 20-minute red card. Last week, World Rugby said that the possibility of replacing a red-carded player with a teammate after 20 minutes was moving closer to global adoption following successful trials. In a joint statement, the three French governing bodies, say the introduction of the 20-minute red card may damage the image of rugby as it could encourage more aggressive play.

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 17-rand-62-cents and the euro at 19-rand-20-cents. One British pound costs 23-rand and Bitcoin trades at 65-thousand-555-dollars-1-cent. Gold sells at two-thousand-643-dollars-74-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 75-dollars-9-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….