News 13:00

BULLETIN 24 January 1 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# The minister of Forestry says the United States’ withdrawal from the Paris Agreement is a blow to global climate efforts
# Global coffee prices are expected to rise due to climate change
# And rugby: The Blitzboks survive a scare against the USA to win in the last minute

# Minister of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment, Dion George, has condemned the United States’ withdrawal from the Paris Agreement, calling it damaging to multilateralism and international law. George expressed regret over the move, highlighting America’s historical role in emissions and moral obligation to lead climate action. He urges the US to honour its commitments, emphasising the importance of the agreement in addressing the global climate crisis collaboratively.

Meanwhile, global coffee prices are expected to rise as a result of climate change. The world’s largest coffee producer, Brazil, has been hardest hit, recording hot weather patterns, along with numerous forest fires that have severely affected coffee crops. In Vietnam, a severe drought followed by heavy rains harmed the world’s largest reserves of robusta, which is the second-most-popular variety globally and is commonly used in instant coffee blends. Nestlé’s Navasha Pather told eNCA coffee prices could increase by 30-to-40 percent this year:

# The City of Johannesburg says claims made in an article on the website Currency about the Johannesburg Art Gallery collection currently exhibited in South Korea are baseless. The article states that mystery surrounds the decision to send 145 valuable artworks from the state-run gallery on tour to the Asian country, bypassing the gallery’s committee entirely. The metro’s spokesperson, Nthatisi Modingoane, says all correct processes were rigorously followed:

# Rugby: A late try by Ronald Brown saved the Blitzboks from a disastrous start to the Perth Sevens. The South Africans beat the United States 24-19 after trailing 17-19 until the final minute. The Blitzboks started well with early tries from Ricardo Duarttee and Quewin Nortjé, but Impi Visser’s yellow card midway through the first half was a turning point. Will Chevalier scored twice to give the Americans a 14-12 lead at the break. The Blitzboks’ face hosts Australia later today and Argentina tomorrow morning.

# The financial indicators: The dollar trades at 18-rand-30-cents and the euro at 19-rand-22-cents. One British pound costs 22-rand-72-cents and Bitcoin trades at 105-thousand-547-dollars. Gold sells at two-thousand-775-dollars-29-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 77-dollars-69-cents a barrel.

# And finally: Twenty-five giant panda cubs in China made their first public appearance as part of a celebration for the upcoming Chinese New Year on 29 January. The cubs are from the China Conservation and Research Centre for the Giant Panda, and the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding respectively. Given the dangerously low numbers and low birth rate of giant pandas in the wild, captive breeding programmes are essential to sustain the population. The number of giant pandas have grown from one-thousand-100 in the 1980s to nearly one-thousand-900 at present.

Stay tuned for more news………….