VIR CHARL: News 18:00

BULLETIN 25 January 6 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# The Reserve Bank keeps the repo rate unchanged at 8.25-percent
# Over 18-thousand South Africans living abroad have registered to vote so far
# And soccer: Mohamed Salah will return to Afcon when he is fit

# The Reserve Bank’s Monetary Policy Committee says the repo rate will remain unchanged at 8.25-percent, aligning with expectations in its first meeting of the year. The prime lending rate thus also remains unchanged at 11.75-percent. The unanimous decision comes amid a stable nine-month benchmark rate. Briefing the media, governor Lesetja Kganyago warned of uncertainties, geopolitical tensions and climate change impacting supply chains. He says this is despite last month’s consumer price inflation easing to 5.1-percent, below expectations:

# The Independent Electoral Commission says 18-thousand-469 South African citizens living in 101 countries have started registering to vote using the online registration portal system launched last month. The commission briefed the media on the readiness for the registration process this weekend. In 2019, about 21-thousand South Africans voted abroad. Chief Electoral Official Sy Mamabolo encourages eligible voters to check their registration status at the nearest diplomatic mission with their ID book or smart card:

# The genocide survivors group, IBUKA, has confirmed the retrieval of 120 victims’ remains from mass graves in a Rwandan village. Executive secretary Napthali Ahishakiye says volunteers unearthed the remains after a resident reported a potential mass grave. Investigations began last October when remains were found during construction work. Over 100-thousand genocide victims’ remains have been retrieved in Rwanda in the past five years. The 1994 genocide saw around one-million deaths, mostly from the Tutsi community, at the hands of Hutu extremists.

# Soccer: Mohamed Salah will definitely play for Egypt in the final of the African Cup of Nation if he is fit and his country qualifies. The Liverpool player returned home from Ivory Coast with a hamstring injury. Liverpool manager Jürgen Klopp says the club and Egypt both want Salah to be fit as soon as possible. They expect him to be back within three to four weeks, with the Afcon final taking place on the 11th of February. Egypt play DR Congo in the round of 16 on Sunday.

# The financial indicators: The dollar trades at 18-rand-83-cents and the euro at 20-rand-46-cents. One British pound costs 23-rand-97-cents and Bitcoin trades at 40-thousand-and-20-dollars-45-cents. Gold sells at two-thousand-and-20-dollars-27-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 81-dollars-18-cents a barrel.

# And finally: The Chinese ambassador in South Africa, Chen Xiaodong, will host Tourism minister Patricia de Lille and Sports, Arts and Culture minister Zizi Kodwa for the local 2024 Chinese New Year celebrations. Taking place at the Sun Arena Time Square in Pretoria East on Monday, this year’s celebration will be centered around the theme Year of the Dragon. The event will highlight the traditions of the Chinese community, while incorporating the cultural aspects of South Africa. The official celebrations in China take place in February.

Stay tuned for more news………….