News 17:00

BULLETIN 19 September 5 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# The Reserve Bank lowers the repo rate by 25 basis points
# Mayor Cilliers Brink says Tshwane coalition achievements are at risk as a no-confidence motion looms
# And soccer: A busy time for the Buccaneers

# The Reserve Bank has decided to lower the repo rate by 25 basis points. This means the rate drops to 8-percent. Banks will lower the prime lending rate to 11.5-percent. It also comes a day after local inflation was reported at 4.4-percent in August, lower than the Reserve Bank’s target of 4.5-percent. Reserve Bank governor Lesetja Kganyago shared the news this afternoon:

# Tshwane mayor Cilliers Brink has warned that the achievements of the multiparty coalition governing the city are at risk as a motion of no confidence looms next week Thursday. Speaking at a media briefing, Brink highlighted the coalition’s successes, including stabilising the city’s finances, improving service delivery, and resolving key policy disputes. He expressed concern that political instability could undo these gains, with ActionSA already withdrawing: 

# The World Resources Institute says longer and more frequent heatwaves, soaring demand for air conditioning, and widespread disease are expected with the current level of global warming. It looked at what might happen in nearly thousand major cities if temperatures remain on track to rise 3 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels. They found the impact on these cities, and the 2.1-billion people who inhabit them, would be dire compared to a scenario where global warming is restricted to 1.5 degrees Celsius.

# Soccer: Orlando Pirates coach Jose Riveiro is confident the team has the depth to compete in four games in two weeks. On Saturday, the Buccaneers host Botswana’s Jwaneng Galaxy in the return leg of their CAF Champions League tie in Orlando, after winning the first leg 2-0. On Tuesday, Pirates take on Polokwane City at home in the Premier League, before visiting Richards Bay in Durban next Sunday. And on 5 October, the Soweto team are up against Stellenbosch FC in the final of the MTN8.

# Financial indicators: The dollar trades at 17-rand-43-cents and the euro at 19-rand-41-cents. One British pound costs 23-rand-9-cents and Bitcoin trades at 63-thousand-108-dollars-23-cents. Gold sells at two-thousand-578-dollars-7-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 74-dollars-17-cents a barrel.

# And finally: The Tourism Business Council of South Africa’s third annual Tourism Leadership Conference, held at Sun City in North West, has emphasised the crucial role of tourism in the economy. Coinciding with Tourism Month, the event aims to drive powerful conversations on visa policies, safety, sustainability, and marketing. A key highlight is the Trevor Noah Tourism Campaign, promoting South Africa globally. The country targets 15.6-million tourist arrivals by 2030.

Stay tuned for more news………….