News 12:00

BULLETIN 30 October 12 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# Private operators will boost freight rail capacity
# Cape Town International Airport has operational staffing constraints linked to the taxi-related unrest
# And rooibos is going to outer space

# Government has approved eleven private train operators expected to begin operations in April next year. Transport minister Barbara Creecy says the boost comes as freight capacity has increased by more than 20-million tonnes over the past two years. The new operators are expected to add another 24-million tonnes. Industry representatives say infrastructure rehabilitation, reliable services and investor confidence remain critical to reducing logistics costs and strengthening the country’s mining, manufacturing and export sectors.

# The Cape Town International Airport is currently experiencing longer-than-usual queues at security screening due to operational staffing constraints associated with the ongoing taxi-related unrest. The disruptions have led to staff shortages, which have caused flight delays. Airports Company South Africa advises passengers to monitor traffic updates, check their flight status directly with their airline and arrive early to allow additional time for airport processing. It adds teams are working to manage passenger flow and minimise disruptions.

# Education activist Hendrick Makaneta is urging prospective students to submit their 2027 National Student Financial Aid Scheme funding applications before tomorrow’s deadline. The scheme has already received more than one million applications for next year’s funding cycle. Makaneta has also condemned individuals and fraudulent organisations that exploit students by demanding money in exchange for assistance with NSFAS applications:

# Rugby: The fifth round of the United Rugby Championship will be played this weekend before the competition takes a one-month break for the international window. The Lions and Glasgow Warriors play each other in Scotland tonight, and the Stormers welcome Irish outfit Ulster to Cape Town tomorrow. The Bulls host Wales’ Scarlet at Loftus and the Sharks are away to Munster in Ireland. The Bulls are currently third on the log behind Edinburgh and Glasgow, with the Stormers fourth, the Sharks fifth and the Lions 11th.

# The financial indicators: The dollar trades at 16-rand-64-cents and the euro at 18-rand-63-cents. One British pound costs 22-rand-32-cents and Bitcoin trades at 77-thousand-874-dollars. Gold sells at three-thousand-987-dollars-52-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 117-dollars-88-sents a barrel.

# And finally: Agricultural organisation TLU SA has welcomed plans to send rooibos seeds to the International Space Station. A total of 17-thousand-346 seeds are being sent as part of a scientific experiment exploring how space conditions could affect their growth. The seeds, weighing approximately 74.2 grams, will travel to Voyager Technologies in Texas, where the experiment will be prepared for spaceflight. TLU SA’s Bennie van Zyl says this highlights the continued progress in agricultural research and innovation:

Stay tuned for more news………….