News 09:00

BULLETIN 21 October 9 am

Good morning. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# Minister George says climate ambition cannot be achieved through punitive trade barriers
# The Road Accident Fund is expediting payments to claimants to reduce the backlog
# And road running: African Bank confirms 250-thousand-rand prize money for the Soweto Marathon

# Minister of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment, Dion George, says South Africa will continue to voice concerns about unilateral trade measures that undermine sustainable development and contradict the principles of the Paris Agreement. The minister is set to attend the 30th Conference of the Parties under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change next month. George says climate ambition cannot be achieved through punitive trade barriers, but through cooperation, innovation, and fairness:

# The Road Accident Fund interim board says it has fulfilled its commitment to expedite payments to claimants and enhance service delivery. The state-owned entity disbursed 17.3-billion-rand in compensation to road accident victims and service providers since April, with 4.18-billion-rand paid out in September alone. This marked the highest amount disbursed in a single month during the 2025/2026 financial year. This month, the fund has already paid 2.57-billion-rand in claims. RAF says claimants, their attorneys, and medical service providers are witnessing the benefits of faster and more reliable settlements.

# The DA in the Western Cape says the recent violent incidents are part of a systemic collapse of policing under a national government that continues to neglect the province. Last Friday, seven men were brutally murdered in Philippi East in what appears to be another gang-related execution. This comes after ten people were killed in Gugulethu in the past two weeks. The DA’s Benedicta van Minnen says urgent deployment of additional police officers on the ground in high-risk precincts is required:

# US president Donald Trump and Australian prime minister Anthony Albanese have signed a critical minerals agreement. This is aimed at countering China’s attempts to tighten control over its global supply. China currently controls about 70-percent of rare earths mining and 90-percent of the processing of the materials. The agreement comes a week after the US condemned China’s expansion of rare earth export controls as a threat to global supply chains. Albanese says this deal is beneficial to both countries:

# Road running: African Bank, the headline sponsor of the Soweto Marathon, has confirmed winners of the 42.2-kilometre race, each will receive 250-thousand-rand for both male and female winners. The event is set for 29 November at Nasrec, with all prize money and race expenses fully covered. African Bank chief marketing officer, Sbusiso Khumalo emphasised the bank’s commitment to supporting runners and the community, despite ongoing disputes over hosting rights. He confirmed African Bank’s plans to continue its sponsorship.

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 17-rand-22-cents and the euro at 20-rand-4-cents. One British pound costs 23-rand-6-cents and Bitcoin trades at 107-thousand-914-dollars. Gold sells at four-thousand-342-dollars-10-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 60-dollars-62-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….