News 17:00

BULLETIN 3 February 5 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# Minister Mantashe proposes withholding minerals from the US over funding cuts
# A new contractor is appointed for the rehabilitation of Lilian Ngoyi Street in Johannesburg after a gas explosion
# And cricket: England’s women’s team will be reviewed after their 16th consecutive loss to Australia

# Mineral Resources minister Gwede Mantashe has suggested Africa should retaliate against US funding cuts by withholding minerals. This follows president Donald Trump’s announcement to cut funding over South Africa’s land expropriation policy. Speaking at the 2025 Mining Indaba in Cape Town, Mantashe criticised the US for taking African resources. Mantashe urged African nations to protect their mineral wealth and leverage it for its own benefit:

# The City of Johannesburg says the rehabilitation of Lilian Ngoyi Street is back on track following a gas explosion in July 2023. A new contractor, Korone Engineering, has been appointed after a settlement with the previous contractor. The first phase is set for completion by August this year, with the second phase scheduled for August next year. Mayor Dada Morero told the media the project will create 80 jobs and support 28 small businesses:

# The DA is calling for urgent intervention as Gauteng e-hailing drivers face rising robberies. There has been incidents where criminals pose as passengers in order to ambush drivers. In a recent case, two suspects were shot, one fatally, during a failed robbery in Eldorado Park. The DA’s Michael Sun urges intensified police patrols, improved driver safety measures, and stronger community collaboration to curb these attacks:

# Cricket: The England and Wales Cricket Board has promised a review after England’s women lost their 16th consecutive match against Australia in the Ashes series. Australia won the one-off Test against the visitors in Melbourne by an innings and 122 runs after also making a clean sweep in the T20s and the one-day series. England hasn’t won the Ashes since 2014. Deputy CEO Clare Connor denies the team lacks professionalism. She says everything will be discussed when a team has underperformed to the extent the women had.

# The financial indicators: The dollar trades at 18-rand-80-cents and the euro at 19-rand-33-cents. One British pound costs 23-rand-26-cents and Bitcoin trades at 95-thousand-35-dollars. Gold sells at two-thousand-809-dollars-12-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 76-dollars-50-cents a barrel.

# And finally: Criminals in South Africa are leveraging artificial intelligence to enhance their scams, using AI-generated videos of celebrities to promote fraudulent investment schemes. According to a report on Moneyweb, AI chatbots serve as an initial filter, targeting potential victims and connecting them to persuasive account managers to seal the deal. Fraudsters are targeting vulnerable individuals with claims of high returns, despite being unregistered with the Financial Sector Conduct Authority. Experts warn that AI is enabling these crimes to escalate, preying on unsuspecting South Africans.

Stay tuned for more news………….