News 13:00

BULLETIN 9 May 1 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# An uninterrupted power supply provides a much-needed boost to the South-African economy
# Concerns mount over the port of Cape Town’s ability to handle increasing citrus exports
# And a former Olympic long jump champion doesn’t expect fireworks in the item in Paris 

# The economy has benefited from the suspension of rolling blackouts for over a month, with various economic activity indices showing improvement. Manufacturing activity surged in April, as seen in the Purchasing Managers Index due to consistent power supply. The BankServ Africa Economic Transaction Index also reached an eight-month high during this period, reflecting positive sentiment. Economist Dawie Roodt suggests that if electricity supplies remain stable, the local economy could exceed the expected one-percent growth rate:

# The Western Cape Government urges urgent action as the port of Cape Town fails to meet its recovery targets, particularly troubling as citrus exports are set to increase rapidly. Despite extensive efforts, the port’s ship working hours remain below target, raising doubts about its ability to handle the upcoming peak citrus season. Transnet’s Cape Town container terminal falls short of its productivity goals. Premier Alan Winde calls for an urgent review of the port’s recovery plan, and private sector involvement to enhance efficiency and safeguard the economy.

# The Department of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development says an investigation is underway to identify the possible source of foot and mouth disease in the Eastern Cape. The virus was identified at two dairy farms in Humansdorp. This brings the number of active cases of the virus in South Africa to 167. The department’s spokesperson, Reggie Ngcobo, says they need to address the industry’s lack of adequate practices and biosecurity that assisted the virus to spread:

# The United Nations has voiced concern after dozens of cases of cholera were reported in flood-stricken Kenya, as the death toll from rain-related disasters surpassed 250. The World Health Organisation says 44 cases have been reported in Tana River County in eastern Kenya, one of the areas hardest hit in weeks of destructive rains and flooding. Cholera is an acute intestinal infection that spreads through contaminated food and water and typically causes severe diarrhoea, vomiting and muscle cramps. It can be especially dangerous for young children.

# Olympics: Four-time long jump gold medallist Carl Lewis doesn’t expect fireworks in the item at the Paris Games this year. The American won the item at consecutive Games from 1984 to 1996, as well as two world titles. Lewis describes the long jump as the toughest of all field items and questions the mental strength of the current athletes. The world record currently stands at 8.95 metres and the Olympic record at 8.90, while Miltiadis Tentoglou of Greece won gold at the Tokyo Games with a jump of 8.41 metres

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 18-rand-57-cents and the euro at 19-rand-92-cents. One British pound costs 23-rand-16-cents and Bitcoin trades at 61-thousand-183-dollars-62-cents. Gold sells at two-thousand-310-dollars-65-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 84-dollars-10-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….