News 15:00

BULLETIN 6 May 3 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# The Electricity minister commends 40 days without load-shedding
# RISE Mzansi Youth shines spotlight on graduates who are denied certificates by universities 
# And tennis: Jannik Sinner’s participation in the French Open is in doubt due to a hip injury

# Electricity minister Kgosientsho Ramokgopa is upbeat about South Africa’s 40-day streak without load-shedding. Addressing the media on the energy action plan’s progress, Ramokgopa credits Eskom’s efforts, highlighting significant improvements in unplanned outages and plant breakdowns. He says stable generation performance has enabled the country to avoid power cuts:

# RISE Mzansi Youth and Student Chapters is saddened by universities withholding qualifications to 600-thousand students based on outstanding debt of more than 5.8-billion-rand. It acknowledges the financial pressure universities face, including the rising costs of education and the need for universities to be financially sustainable. However, RISE Mzansi’s Khanyisile Xayimpi says withholding qualifications due to debt can profoundly devastate students:

# French president Emmanuel Macron is meeting Xi Jinping for talks in Paris as the Chinese leader kicked off a state visit to France. Macron told Xi coordination with Beijing on major crises including Ukraine and the Middle East was essential and urged fair rules for all in Europe-China trade. At the start of a trilateral meeting attended by European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen, Macron said the future of Europe will very clearly depend on their ability to continue to develop relations with China in a balanced manner.

# Tennis: World number two Jannik Sinner’s participation in the French Open is in doubt after he had to withdraw from the Italian Open in his home country. A hip injury forced him to withdraw from the Madrid Open last week. Sinner says he will only play at Roland Garros if he fully recovers by the time the clay-court Grand Slam tournament starts on the 26th after learning of the seriousness of the injury. He admits missing out on the Rome tournament affects his preparations for the French Open.

# The financial indicators: The dollar trades at 18-rand-40-cents and the euro at 19-rand-83-cents. One British pound costs 23-rand-15-cents and Bitcoin trades at 64-thousand-223-dollars-7-cents. Gold sells at two-thousand-321-dollars-95-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 83-dollars-62-cents a barrel.

# And finally: The cast of The Lord of the Rings has bid farewell to co-star Bernard Hill, known for his role as King Théoden. He passed away at 79. Cast members Elijah Wood, Billy Boyd, Dominic Monaghan and Sean Astin, who played the four hobbits, expressed their grief and called Hill a family member. Renowned for his role as the captain in Titanic, Hill’s breakout performance was in Boys from the Blackstuff. He starred as Yosser Hughes, a man struggling with unemployment.

Stay tuned for more news………….