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Lockdown day 159: Pictures of the day

A round-up of the best pictures from day 159 of the national lockdown

1 Sep 2020 4PM 1 min

Zimbabwe’s market regulator allows second bourse to open

Harare — Zimbabwe's markets regulator on Tuesday permitted a US dollar-denominated stock exchange to operate in the resort town of Victoria Falls, part of efforts to attract foreign investors to a country grappling with severe foreign exchange shortages. The Victoria Falls Stock Exchange (VFEX), which is owned by the Zimbabwe…

1 Sep 2020 4PM 1 min

Macron tells Lebanese leaders to implement changes or face sanctions

Beirut — French President Emmanuel Macron said on Tuesday Lebanese political leaders had agreed to form a government of experts in the next two weeks and that he expected the government to start delivering on a road map of reforms within six to eight weeks. “There is no blank cheque,”…

1 Sep 2020 4PM 3 min

There are lots of ideas about the economy — but no action

That SA is not short of ideas or plans to revive and grow its moribund economy is clear. There have been any number of economic plans from the government, the private sector and other social partners, and a plethora of experts have offered potential solutions to SA’s problems. But the…

1 Sep 2020 3PM 6 min

Argentina secures backing from creditors for debt restructuring

Buenos Aires — Argentina has defused fears of a messy default after it gained backing from creditors, allowing it to exchange 99% of the bonds involved in a $65bn restructuring, a deal that could set a precedent for future sovereign crises. After months of winding and tense negotiations, framed by…

1 Sep 2020 3PM 3 min

Kenya in talks with World Bank for budget-support loan

Nairobi — Kenya is in talks with the World Bank for a loan to provide further budget support, but a loan this financial year is unlikely, according to treasury secretary Ukur Yatani. The East African nation’s government and the lender were “still discussing policy areas” to be covered by the…

1 Sep 2020 2PM 1 min

Saudi king removes commander in Yemen over corruption claims

Riyadh — Saudi Arabia’s King Salman bin Abdulaziz al-Saud dismissed the commander of Saudi-led forces in Yemen and several other defence ministry employees on suspicion of corruption amid an ongoing political crackdown. Lt-Gen Prince Fahad bin Turki, a grandson of Saudi Arabia’s founding King Abdulaziz, was ordered to retire, according…

1 Sep 2020 1PM 2 min

Nicola Sturgeon announce plans for new Scottish independence referendum

London — Scotland's First Minister Nicola Sturgeon on Tuesday pledged to publish draft legislation for a new Scottish independence referendum, including the question and timing of the vote, before the country's parliamentary election in 2021. Sturgeon, who heads Edinburgh's pro-independence devolved government, put on hold plans for a second referendum…

1 Sep 2020 1PM 2 min

EDITORIAL: Buoyed Ramaphosa must use it or lose it

Depending on who is asked, the outcome of the ANC’s national executive committee (NEC) meeting over the weekend was either a turning point in Cyril Ramaphosa’s presidency or a non-event. Those who profess the latter will argue that a rebellion led by Tony Yengeni with the endorsement of Ramaphosa’s predecessor,…

1 Sep 2020 1PM 3 min

Charlie Hebdo to republish Prophet Muhammad cartoons that led to 2015 massacre

Paris — French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo is republishing caricatures of the Prophet Muhammad that unleashed a wave of anger in the Muslim world to mark the start of the trial of alleged accomplices in the militant attack against it 2015. Among the cartoons, most of which were first published…

1 Sep 2020 1PM 1 min

Ending systemic and ingrained gender bias in corporate life needs the support of all

Investing time to build relationships and credibility is an antidote that women in leadership positions should use effectively to overcome gender-based discrimination and attenuate deeply ingrained patriarchal practices that are a result of centuries of socialisation. Studies have shown that the number of women leading corporate SA is still negligible…

1 Sep 2020 12PM 4 min

Iran’s Khamenei says UAE has ‘betrayed’ the Muslim world with Israel deal

Dubai — The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has betrayed the Islamic world and the Palestinians by reaching a deal on normalising ties with Israel, Iran's Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said on Tuesday. “Of course, the UAE's betrayal will not last long, but this stigma will always be remembered. They allowed the…

1 Sep 2020 11AM 1 min

Brazil GDP plummeted 9.7% in second quarter due to Covid-19

Brasília — Brazil’s economy registered the biggest drop on record in the second quarter as social isolation measures aimed at slowing the spread of the coronavirus paralysed activity from investments to family consumption. GDP plunged 9.7% from the previous three-month period, more than the median estimate for a 9.2% tumble…

1 Sep 2020 11AM 2 min

Deepwater Horizon disaster defining moment for CEO of Norway’s wealth fund

Oslo — On his last day as CEO of Norway’s $1.2-trillion sovereign wealth fund, Yngve Slyngstad revealed to his audience the moment he grasped just how crucial responsible ownership will be to the future of global finance. He zeroed in on the Deepwater Horizon disaster in the Gulf of Mexico…

1 Sep 2020 11AM 2 min

ENOCH GODONGWANA: Membership of ANC NEC does not preclude development bank role

Old Mutual-linked financial services company Futuregrowth Asset Management has raised the issue ( of my roles as both an ANC national executive committee (NEC) member who chairs the party’s economic transformation committee and as the nonexecutive chair of the Development Bank of Southern Africa (DBSA). This is easily addressed. No…

1 Sep 2020 10AM 6 min

Treasury will meet deadline to appoint accounting authority at Prasa, it says

The Treasury says it will meet the deadline set by the High Court in the Western Cape to appoint an accounting authority for the Passenger Rail Agency of SA (Prasa) before the end of the week. This follows judge Nathan Erasmus’s ruling that transport minister Fikile Mbalula’s failure to appoint…

1 Sep 2020 9AM 2 min

African regulators should move boldly to grow global digital economy

Africa’s role in the development of the global digital economy requires bold decisions if the continent is to influence global affairs, the global economy and the global imagination. This was the vision of economic change outlined in The Economist’s May special report on “The African Century”. The continent should drive…

1 Sep 2020 9AM 4 min

JAPAN TIMES: Pandemic proves too much for Abenomics

As outgoing Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe himself says, political leaders are judged not by how long they have been in power but by what they have accomplished. When Abe surpassed his great-uncle Eisaku Sato (in office from 1964 to 1972) as Japan’s longest-serving prime minister last week, his approval…