News 15:00

BULLETIN 25 March 3 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# The Communication Workers Union says there is no political will from government to save the Post Office
# A Parliamentary committee calls for stronger tourism skills alignment
# And cricket: The Proteas clinch a 3-2 series win with a 33-run victory in Christchurch

# The Communication Workers Union says it is clear that there is no political will from government to save the South African Post Office from liquidation. Organised labour has rejected proposals by the business rescue practitioners to liquidate the Post Office, saying the move would result in over five-thousand workers losing their jobs. CWU’s spokesperson, Nathen Bowers, says SAPO cannot be allowed to fail:

# Parliament’s Portfolio Committee on Tourism has welcomed training efforts by Culture, Arts, Tourism, Hospitality and Sport Sector Education and Training Authority, however it says more must be done to support the sector. Chairperson Ronalda Nalumango urged closer collaboration with the Department of Tourism and industry partners. The committee recommended a comprehensive, demand-led skills strategy aligned with workplace needs, improved curriculum reviews, and expanded digital and community-based training programmes to better match industry requirements and boost employment outcomes.

# The Freedom Front Plus in Gauteng says Rand Water’s latest attachment of the Emfuleni Municipality’s bank account is the final nail in the coffin for this administration. This comes after the municipality failed to fully settle a debt of 300-million-rand and only managed to pay 200-million-rand. The FF Plus’ Gerda Senekal says there is clearly no hope left for the municipality:

# And on to international news: If the price of oil hits 150-dollar a barrel it will trigger a global recession. Larry Fink, the boss of US financial giant BlackRock has told the BBC if Iran remains a threat and oil prices stay high it will have profound implications for the world economy. Fink believes if the conflict is settled and Iran becomes internationally accepted again, the price could fall back to below pre-war levels. If not, the oil price could stay close to 150-dollars, which will have profound implications for the economy with possibly a steep recession.

# Cricket: South Africa clinched a historic series victory in Christchurch, defeating New Zealand by 33 runs in the fifth and final T20 Test. The Proteas batted first and posted a formidable 187 for 4, fuelled by a sensational 75 off 33 balls from Connor Esterhuizen. New Zealand’s chase faltered and they finished on 154 for eight. The South African spinners, Keshav Maharaj and Prenelan Subrayen, again proved decisive and stifled the middle order. The 3-2 serious win is South Africa’s first-ever bilateral T20 series triumph on New Zealand soil.

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 16-rand-85-cents and the euro at 19-rand-55-cents. One British pound costs 22-rand-60-cents and Bitcoin trades at 71-thousand-992-dollars. Gold sells at four-thousand-582-dollars-72-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 94-dollars-53-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….