News 16:00

BULLETIN 17 September 4 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# Gauteng’s acting commissioner urges vigilance as police investigate the Ekurhuleni murders
# Australia tightens its visa rules to curb migration
# And motorsport: Rosberg warns Antonelli about the biggest F1 title threat

# Acting Gauteng police commissioner Fred Kekana has urged the public to allow police to conduct their investigation following the discovery of a ninth woman’s body in Ekurhuleni. The woman, believed to be about 30, had stab wounds and was partially clothed. She remains unidentified. Forensic investigations are underway to establish the cause of death. Kekana has appealed for information, and warned against sharing pictures or misinformation about the cases:

# Statistics South Africa says retail trade sales increased by 3.4-percent in July, compared with the same period last year. The growth was mainly driven by general dealers, other retailers, and stores selling clothing, footwear and food products. Sales also rose by 2.5-percent compared with June. Stats SA’s Raquel Floris says over the three months to July, retail sales increased by 2.2-percent compared with the same period last year:

# The Information Regulator is investigating a data breach at vehicle tracking company Cartrack following a ransomware attack in August. Cartrack says its customer database, containing contact details, bank information and vehicle data, was accessed. A ransomware group has claimed responsibility and alleged that 500 gigabytes of data was stolen. Official Hangi Mbedzi says Cartrack has notified the regulator under the Protection of Personal Information Act. She says the notification is still being assessed as investigations continue into the breach.

Moving abroad:

# Australia is tightening visa rules for foreign students and backpackers in an attempt to reduce migration. Foreign students will no longer generally be able to bring partners or children with them, while new ballot rules will determine some extensions for working-holiday visas. Holders of visitor visas will also be prevented from switching to other visa types while in Australia. The government aims to reduce annual net migration to 225-thousand by 2028 from the current 300-thousand. Home Affairs minister Tony Burke denies the changes are politically motivated.

# Motorsport: 2016 Formula One world champion Nico Rosberg warns the psychological terror of a first championship will eventually catch up with Mercedes’ Kimi Antonelli. The 20-year-old Italian is 81 points clear of British teammate George Russell at the top of the drivers’ standings with nine races remaining. German-Finnish Rosberg told Sky Sport Antonelli shouldn’t worry about the drivers around him, but instead focus on his own mindset in the remaining races.

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 16-rand-20-cents and the euro at 18-rand-62-cents. One British pound costs 21-rand-71-cents and Bitcoin trades at 77-thousand-27-dollars. Gold sells at four-thousand-372-dollars-25-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 103-dollars-5-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….