News 18:00

BULLETIN 19 September 6 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# The Reserve Bank lowers the repo rate by 25 basis points
# Gauteng has 45 incomplete multi-million-rand infrastructure projects
# And rugby: The Sharks make two changes for the Currie Cup final

# 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:

# The Gauteng government currently has 45 incomplete multi-million-rand infrastructure projects, including projects that are delayed or have missed their deadline. This is according to a presentation the provincial Treasury gave to members of the National Council of Provinces. Of the total incomplete projects, 24 are currently in construction to be completed, while five are still in the planning stages, and the rest are completed but still awaiting occupancy certificates. The provincial government has allocated 12.7-billion-rand in this financial year to address infrastructure problems.

# The City of Cape Town urges learners not to hog library study guides as matric final exams approach. Communities are also asked to support learners during this stressful exam period and create a conducive environment for studying. Mayoral committee member for Community Services and Health, Patricia van der Ross says while these resources are available for borrowing, the demand often leads to shorter lending periods:  

# Multiple women have accused Egyptian billionaire Mohamed Al-Fayed, the former owner of upmarket London department store Harrods where they worked, of rape and sexual assault. The allegations, made in a BBC documentary and podcast, are the latest to be levelled at powerful figures following the start of the #MeToo movement in 2017. Fayed died last year at the age of 94. More than 20 women have spoken to the BBC as part of a special investigation alleging assault and physical violence at properties in London and Paris.

# Rugby: The Sharks will take continuity in team selection as well as momentum and confidence into Saturday’s Currie Cup Final against the Lions in Johannesburg. An eight-game unbeaten streak, including a win over the Lions towards the end of July, provides the team with the perfect build-up. Head coach John Plumtree has largely stuck with last week’s semi-final team, making just two changes. He named Emmanuel Tshituka at eighthman to replace Phepsi Buthelezi, while Jurenzo Julius returns at outside centre to partner with Springbok André Esterhuizen in the midfield.

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 17-rand-51-cents and the euro at 19-rand-48-cents. One British pound costs 23-rand-17-cents and Bitcoin trades at 63-thousand-242-dollars-89-cents. Gold sells at two-thousand-574-dollars-84-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 74-dollars-32-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….