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☆ Desmond Tutu's modest car reminds South Africans of his values
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-07 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Archbishop Desmond Tutu laughs as crowds gather to celebrate his birthday by unveiling an arch in his honour outside St George's Cathedral in Cape Town, South Africa, October 7, 2017. REUTERS/Mike Hutchings/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsCAPE TOWN, Oct 7 (Reuters) - South Africa's anti-apartheid hero Desmond Tutu could have chosen practically any car in the world when billionaire Warren Buffett offered to buy him a vehicle. The Desmond Tutu Intellectual Property Trust, which manages his legacy, has put the old car on show along with his books and possessions in honour of Tutu's 92nd birthday, which he would have celebrated on Saturday. The car, displayed in Cape Town, the city where the archbishop lived for most of his later life, became a symbol of Tutu's values. Desmond Mpilo Tutu, awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1984 for his non-violent opposition to white minority rule, died in 2021.

Persons: Desmond Tutu, Mike Hutchings, Warren Buffett, Mercedes Benz, Tutu's, Mamphela Ramphele, Tutu, Ramphele, Nelson Mandela, Desmond Mpilo Tutu, Esa Alexander, Anait Miridzhanian, Andrew Heavens Organizations: REUTERS, Toyota Corolla, Trust, Reuters, Thomson Locations: St George's Cathedral, Cape Town , South Africa, Cape Town, Africa

☆ South African rand slightly firms as US dollar dips
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-04 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

South African Rand coins are seen in this illustration picture taken October 28, 2020. REUTERS/Mike Hutchings/Illustration Acquire Licensing RightsJOHANNESBURG, Oct 4 (Reuters) - The South African rand traded slightly higher on Wednesday following several days of weakness as the softening of the U.S. dollar supported risk sentiment. At 1619 GMT, the rand traded at 19.2800 against the dollar , about 0.3% stronger than its previous close. South Africa's benchmark 2030 government bond was weaker in afternoon deals, with the yield up 6.5 basis points to 11.085%. Reporting by Tannur Anders and Anait Miridzhanian; Editing by Alexander Winning and Chris ReeseOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Mike Hutchings, Tannur Anders, Anait, Alexander Winning, Chris Reese Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, U.S ., P, Africa PMI, Local, Woolworths, Africa's, Thomson Locations: Rights JOHANNESBURG, Africa, Stillwater, Johannesburg

☆ South African insurer Discovery resumes dividend on strong balance sheet
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-21 | by ( Nqobile Dludla | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The logo of South Africa's Discovery group in seen on its headquarters in Sandton, Johannesburg, South Africa, February 20, 2020. Discovery, which has a market share of 57.8% in the health insurance space, declared a final dividend of 110 South Africa cents per share. The company said organic cash generation was strong during the year after increased cash generation in its life insurance Discovery Life following high COVID-19 related claims in the prior period and the reduction in the cost of new initiatives. Discovery's headline earnings per share (HEPS) were 834.3 South African cents, up 5% from 792.4 cents a year earlier. Normalised HEPS, which Discovery considers a more accurate measure of its profit and which also excludes exceptional items, rose by 32%.

Persons: Mike Hutchings, Adrian Gore, Gore, Nqobile, Mark Potter, Barbara Lewis Organizations: REUTERS, Bank, Discovery Ltd, Thomson Locations: Sandton, Johannesburg, South Africa, JOHANNESBURG, Africa, Britain

☆ South African rand firms after consumer confidence, current account data
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-07 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

South African Rand coins are seen in this illustration picture taken October 28, 2020. REUTERS/Mike Hutchings/Illustration Acquire Licensing RightsJOHANNESBURG, Sept 7 (Reuters) - The rand recovered some losses on Thursday after a consumer confidence index improved, although new data also showed that South Africa's current account deficit had widened. "Today's consumer confidence and current account figures beat estimates providing some encouragement in what has been a tough year for South Africa with the rand attempting to claw back some lost gains," said DailyFX analyst Warren Venketas. Central bank data earlier on Thursday showed South Africa's net foreign reserves fell to $55.444 billion by the end of August from $55.626 billion in July. South Africa's benchmark 2030 government bond was stronger, with the yield down 2.5 basis points to 10.385%.

Persons: Mike Hutchings, Warren Venketas, Tannur Anders, Nellie Peyton, Bhargav Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, Johannesburg Stock Exchange, Thomson Locations: Rights JOHANNESBURG, Africa, Johannesburg

☆ South African rand pares losses after Powell speech
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-25 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

South African Rand coins are seen in this illustration picture taken October 30, 2020. At 1528 GMT, the rand traded at 18.6550 against the dollar , about 0.9% stronger than its previous close, after gaining as much as 1% earlier in the day. The rand has had a turbulent week, contributing to its over 4% losses month-to-date. The risk-sensitive rand often takes cues from global factors like U.S. monetary policy in the absence of domestic economic data cues. South Africa's benchmark 2030 government bond was weaker, with the yield up 1 basis points at 10.210%.

Persons: Mike Hutchings, Jerome Powell, Danny Greeff, Jackson, Greeff, Tannur Anders, Sonia Cheema, Devika Syamnath, Jonathan Oatis Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, U.S . Federal Reserve, Treasury, Analytics, Johannesburg Stock Exchange, Thomson Locations: Rights JOHANNESBURG, United States, Johannesburg

☆ South African rand lifted by falling U.S. yields as BRICS summit kicks off
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-22 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

South African Rand coins are seen in this illustration picture taken October 28, 2020. REUTERS/Mike Hutchings/Illustration Acquire Licensing RightsJOHANNESBURG, Aug 22 (Reuters) - The South African rand gained on Tuesday as risk appetite returned to global markets due to falling U.S. Treasury yields, as the first day of the BRICS summit of emerging economies kicked off in Johannesburg. At 1605 GMT, the rand traded at 18.7900 against the dollar , about 0.9% stronger than its previous close. South Africa is hosting the leaders of Brazil, India and China for the Tuesday-to-Thursday summit, while Russian President Vladimir Putin will join virtually. The BRICS summit "is unlikely to provide the market with significant or sustainable momentum until the bloc adopts implementable policies," Greeff said.

Persons: Mike Hutchings, Danny Greeff, Vladimir Putin, Putin, Greeff, Tannur Anders, Bhargav Acharya, Mark Potter, Jonathan Oatis Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, Treasury, Analytics, Johannesburg Stock Exchange, Thomson Locations: Rights JOHANNESBURG, Johannesburg, U.S, Africa, Brazil, India, China, South Africa, Ukraine

☆ South Africa's consumer goods firms warn of much higher prices as power cuts bite
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-08 | by ( Nqobile Dludla | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/2] A shopper looks for goods during an electricity load-shedding blackout in Johannesburg, South Africa, February 12, 2019. Food, consumer goods companies and retailers in South Africa are cranking up diesel generators and spending more on back up power supplies, adding to the pressure from soaring costs for raw materials, transportation and packaging. In an open letter to President Cyril Ramaphosa, the chief executives of member companies of the Consumer Goods Council of South Africa pleaded for urgent and decisive action from the government to solve the power crisis. Shoprite has said its additional spend on diesel to operate generators amounted to 560 million rand ($32 million) in the six months to Jan.1. Supermarket group Pick n Pay (PIKJ.J) spent 346 million rand in the 10 months to Dec. 25 to run generators, and is currently spending about 60 million rand per month.

☆ Vodacom gets fibre boost as regulator approves transfer of DFA licences
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-09 | by ( Andreas Rinke | Miranda Murray | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/2] A branch South African mobile communications provider Vodacom in Cape Town is shown in this picture taken November 10, 2015. REUTERS/Mike HutchingsJOHANNESBURG, Nov 9 (Reuters) - South Africa's Vodacom (VODJ.J) moved a step closer to a considerable expansion of its fibre footprint after the country's telecoms regulator approved the transfer of Dark Fibre Africa's licences to the mobile operator. If approved, Vodacom will also transfer its fibre assets to MAZIV. The deal gives South Africa's largest mobile operator exposure to the country's biggest open access fibre players. DFA is a leading provider of carrier-grade dark fibre - unused optical fibre - specialising in building, installing, and operating a national metro fibre network spanning 13,000 kilometres.

☆ EXCLUSIVE S.Africa's energy transition plan needs $46.5 bln, five times pledges - sources
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-21 | by ( Tim Cocks | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Giant wind turbines dot the landscape at the Darling Wind Power national demonstration project near Cape Town July 17, 2009. The project is the country's first independent wind power producer and currently has four turbines, with plans for another six. South Africa is also seeking to become a hub for so-called green hydrogen and electric vehicle manufacturing -- both of which could attract significant private sector investment. Coal makes up four-fifths of South Africa's power generation, so turning state utility Eskom to renewables is a priority for the government. Moving South Africa's economy into greener energy will require vast funds in the longer term, with some analysts estimating at least $250 billion over the next three decades.

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