News 15:00

BULLETIN 21 August 3 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# Ramaphosa calls for more balanced trade between South Africa and Zimbabwe
# The Gauteng government urges residents to save water as demand rises
# And tennis: The US Open’s purse is set to top 1.74 billion-rand – the biggest prize fund in Grand Slam history

# President Cyril Ramaphosa has called for increased and more balanced trade between South Africa and Zimbabwe. He was speaking at the fourth session of the South Africa-Zimbabwe bi-national commission in Pretoria. Ramaphosa says bilateral trade has almost doubled over the past four years, but remains heavily weighted towards South African exports. He urges both countries to use the Africa Continental Free Trade Area to expand production and exports:

# Tourism minister Patricia de Lille has welcomed phase three of the Government-Business Partnership, which identifies tourism as a key driver of economic growth and job creation. The initiative aims to lift economic growth above three-percent, with priorities including improving air access, modernising visa processing, enhancing destination marketing, tourist safety and infrastructure investment. De Lille says tourism enters the new phase with an established public-private partnership as the sector supports 954-thousand direct jobs and contributed 4.9 percent to gross domestic product in 2024.

# The Gauteng government is urging residents, businesses and institutions to use water sparingly as consumption continues to rise. Reservoir and tower storage levels are declining, despite pumping systems operating near full capacity. Johannesburg, Ekurhuleni and Tshwane account for about 70-percent of water supplied by Rand Water. The province says repairing leaks, taking shorter showers and avoiding unnecessary hosing can help ease pressure. Community Development Workers are also being mobilised to promote water conservation and behavioral change.

# Tennis: This year’s US Open purse will reach 1.74-billion-rand, representing the largest player compensation package in the sport’s history. This is a 20-percent increase from last year. Both singles champions will earn around 88.4-million-rand, and first-round losers will get 2.25-million-rand, the largest amount in tennis history just for making the main draw. The compensation package also includes a new player support programme. The United States Tennis Association’s CEO, Craig Tiley, says they are proud to deliver record-setting prize money and expanded player benefits.

# The financial indicators: The dollar trades at 16-rand-1-cents against the rand and the euro at 18-rand-73-cents. One British pound costs 21-rand-86-cents and Bitcoin trades at 78-thousand-483-dollars. Gold sells at four-thousand-597-dollars-93-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 95-dollars-85-cents a barrel.

# And finally: Higher Education, Science and Innovation minister Blade Nzimande says the South African Women in Science Awards are vital in motivating women and encouraging girls to pursue careers in science, technology, engineering and mathematics. He says the awards form part of a broader transformation programme, supported through scholarships, postgraduate funding and assistance for emerging researchers. Nzimande says women have enormous potential:

Stay tuned for more news………….