News 11:00

BULLETIN 22 April 11 am

Good morning. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# The IEC says preparations for the local government elections are ahead of schedule
# The EU agrees to widen sanctions against Iran to include those who block the Strait of Hormuz
# And soccer: A new batch of World Cup tickets go on sale after over five million were already sold

# The Electoral Commission says it is comfortably ahead of schedule with the technical preparations for the local government elections. It has been allocated just over 3.1-billion-rand for the 2026/27 financial year, and expects to spend 4.7-billion-rand, which leaves a 1.6-billion-rand deficit. This will be partly offset by a 1.1-billion-rand rollover from the previous year, pending approval from National Treasury. CEO Sy Mamabolo says they will deliver free and fair elections:

# Build One South Africa has welcomed the National Assembly’s passing of the Division of Revenue Bill and the Special Appropriation Bill. The Division of Revenue Bill sets out how government funds are shared across national, provincial and local government. The Special Appropriation Bill provides an additional 13.5-billion-rand for the 2025/26 financial year to address urgent and unforeseen spending needs. BOSA’s Nobuntu Hlazo-Webster says there is an affordability crisis in the country:

# About 23-million South Africans, or 37.9-percent of the population, are living below the lower-bound poverty line, a notable decline from 46.7-percent in 2015. This is according to Statistics South Africa’s latest poverty trends report. Poverty levels declined across all age categories between 2015 and 2023, while Limpopo, the Eastern Cape, and Mpumalanga recorded the biggest drop. Gauteng recorded an increase from 26.3-percent in 2015 to 26.5-percent in 2023. StatsSA says stronger interventions to address inequality are needed.

Moving abroad:

# European Union countries have agreed to widen sanctions against Iran to include those responsible for blocking the Strait of Hormuz. The continued blockade of the route, which is normally the passage for one-fifth of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas supplies, is causing concern in Europe, which relies heavily on imported jet fuel. European Commission vice president Kaja Kallas says freedom of navigation is a cornerstone of international maritime law:

# Soccer: World governing body FIFA says over five million tickets have already been sold for the World Cup in the United States, Canada and Mexico, kicking off on 11 June. A new batch of tickets to all 104 matches is going on sale today. FIFA says, subject to availability, additional tickets will be released on an ongoing basis until the final on 19 July. The World Cup is on track to surpass the all-time attendance record of 3.5 million set during the 1994 tournament in the US.

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 16-rand-43-cents and the euro at 19-rand-30-cents. One British pound costs 22-rand-21-cents and Bitcoin trades at 78-thousand-26-dollars. Gold sells at four-thousand-770-dollars-15-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 93-dollars-15-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….