News 18:00

BULLETIN 30 September 6 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# Gauteng is to explore alternative funding for fiscal sustainability and payment of e-toll debt
# The Gauteng legislature pushes for a timely mayoral election in Tshwane
# And rugby: Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu’s injury may keep him out for the rest of the year

# Gauteng aims to enhance fiscal sustainability by exploring alternative funding sources like public-private partnerships, donor funding, and developmental finance. Finance MEC Lebogang Maile says the 2025 budget aims for debt stabilisation and sustained service delivery. The province has to cope with a smaller budget and also pay e-toll debt. Maile also clarified that motorists who paid for e-tolls will not be refunded:

Meanwhile, the Gauteng legislature’s portfolio committee on Co-operative Governance and Traditional Affairs has called for stability in Tshwane following the removal of mayor Cilliers Brink. The committee’s chairperson, Mzi Khumalo, urges a swift mayoral election to keep municipal operations running smoothly and ensure uninterrupted service delivery during this transitional period. Spokesperson Pfano Bulasigobo says the committee will remain involved to ensure a smooth and transparent process that puts residents first: 

# The SA Special Risk Insurance Association is engaging government and other stakeholders in a bid to extend its cover to natural disasters, climate-related risks and cyberattacks. The cost of damage from the June floods in KwaZulu-Natal was estimated at more than 1.3-billion-rand, while the 2022 floods in the province caused damage estimated at seven-billion-rand to at least 826 companies. The association’s chairperson, Nolwandle Mgoqi, says such a change would require an amendment to the Sasria Act.

# Rugby: Young Springbok star Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu may be out longer than anticipated with a knee injury he suffered before South Africa’s Rugby Championship victory over the All Blacks in Johannesburg. He didn’t tell coach Rassie Erasmus or the medical staff about the problem and played nonetheless, probably aggravating the injury. Feinberg-Mgnomezulu later underwent an operation and was thought to be ready for the Boks’ end-of-year tour of Europe, but his team, the Stormers, now expect him to miss the rest of the year.

# The financial indicators: The dollar trades at 17-rand-22-cents and the euro at 19-rand-23-cents. One British pound costs 23-rand-5-cents and Bitcoin trades at 63-thousand-663-dollars-71-cents. Gold sells at two-thousand-629-dollars-4-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 71-dollars-43-cents a barrel.

# And finally: The latest Experian Consumer Default Index has recorded a slight improvement in the credit defaulting behaviour of South African consumers. The improvement is across various loan types such as personal loans, home loans, vehicle loans and credit cards in the three months that ended in June. The index indicates how consumers appear to have marginally improved in their debt management. Experian’s Jaco van Jaarsveldt told SABC News that lender risk appetite levels also had a role to play:

Stay tuned for more news………….