BusinessLIVE - For Your Ear

Government flouts its own laws on worker benefits, says Cosatu

The government, which is tasked with formulating and implementing legislation that provides for sound labour relations, is transgressing the laws it is meant to uphold, labour federation Cosatu said on Monday. Cosatu said the departments of public service & administration and employment & labour, together with the Treasury, are refusing…

31 Aug 2020 1PM 2 min

Switching to green economy a holistic shift across entire society

Industrial policy has been at the heart of most countries’ public policy in one form or the other for centuries. The global financial crisis and now the Covid-19 pandemic have led governments to introduce big economic stimulus packages that include support to domestic industry, highlighting once more the importance of…

31 Aug 2020 1PM 7 min

US releases declassified diplomatic cables on arms pledges to Taiwan

Taipei — The US released Reagan-era diplomatic cables on Monday that underscore Washington’s commitment to Taiwan’s future being determined free of coercion from China. The cables, which were released Monday on the website of the American Institute in Taiwan, the de facto US embassy in Taipei, make clear that increased…

31 Aug 2020 12PM 1 min

Lebanon names new prime minister under pressure from France

Beirut — Lebanese leaders named diplomat Mustapha Adib as the new prime minister on Monday under pressure from French President Emmanuel Macron who will visit Beirut to press for reforms aimed at dragging the Middle East nation out of a financial abyss. With its economy devastated by a financial crisis,…

31 Aug 2020 12PM 4 min

ANC officials charged with graft must step aside

The ANC's national executive committee (NEC) decided at a weekend meeting that party officials formally charged with corruption and other serious crimes must step aside from their posts, President Cyril Ramaphosa said on Monday. The ANC has been buffeted in recent weeks by reports of graft during the coronavirus crisis,…

31 Aug 2020 12PM 1 min

India accuses China of ‘provocation’ after latest Himalayan border clash

New Delhi — India and China relations have entered a critical new phase after fresh conflict along their disputed Himalayan border, after multiple rounds of high-level military talks failed to end the months-long standoff. The defence ministry in New Delhi said on Monday its soldiers were able to stop a…

31 Aug 2020 11AM 3 min

Rwanda arrests ‘Hotel Rwanda’ inspiration Paul Rusesabagina for terrorism

Rwandan police detained Paul Rusesabagina, a former hotel manager who sheltered hundreds of people during the 1994 genocide and whose story was later adopted by Hollywood, on terrorism allegations. Rusesabagina, portrayed as a hero in the Oscar-nominated 2004 movie “Hotel Rwanda”, was shown to the media in handcuffs at the…

31 Aug 2020 11AM 1 min

Historic flight takes Israeli and US officials to UAE

Abu Dhabi — Top aides to US President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu arrived in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) on a historic flight from Tel Aviv on Monday, to finalise a pact marking open relations between the Gulf power and Israel. Even before discussions start in…

31 Aug 2020 11AM 3 min

Out of the Covid-19 crisis we might see opportunities savvy investment

Recently published statistics by the Companies and Intellectual Property Commission (CIPC) reflect 157 new filings for business rescue in the period April to August. These have affected the public sector (four), the private sector (122) and close corporations (31). The busiest regions for filings have been Gauteng (44%), Western Cape…

31 Aug 2020 11AM 7 min

LETTER: ‘We don’t deliver, whatever it takes’ should be Post Office’s slogan

What is a post office for? It’s all very well reporting prominently on the unseemly goings-on in the Post Office boardroom, but what about the dysfunctional organisation itself? For years its slogan, “We deliver, whatever it takes”, has been a laughable misnomer. Since the first Covid-19 lockdown on March 27,…

31 Aug 2020 11AM 1 min

Diesel price to fall 21c a litre as petrol lifts 1c

Motorists will pay 1c a litre more for all grades of petrol from Wednesday September 2, but owners of diesel vehicles will enjoy a 21c a litre saving, the Central Energy Fund (CEF) announced today. The wholesale price of illuminating paraffin will decrease by 26c a litre. The petrol price…

31 Aug 2020 11AM 2 min

LETTER: Private sector CEOs’ obscene pay sets bad example

Congratulations to Allan Seccombe for his article (“Bliksem! CEO pay is still going through the roof after more than doubling in a decade (”, August 27). It is important for journalists to highlight the immorality of a system that creates such obscene inequality. Since its inception the SA gold mining…

31 Aug 2020 10AM 1 min

Potential issues with Ad5 Covid-19 vaccines from Russia and China

Toronto/Chicago — High-profile Covid-19 vaccines developed in Russia and China share a potential shortcoming: they are based on a common cold virus that many people have been exposed to, potentially limiting their effectiveness, some experts say. CanSino Biologics’ vaccine, approved for military use in China, is a modified form of…

31 Aug 2020 10AM 4 min

LETTER: Don’t sweep UIF fraud under the carpet

At a portfolio meeting of the department of employment & labour in parliament, the minister tried to make light of the auditor-general suspending all the structures in the Unemployment Insurance Fund (UIF) while it was investigating fraud (“Ters payments resume after another delay (”, August 26). This is an unprecedented…

31 Aug 2020 10AM 1 min

LETTER: Black lives in Africa matter too

While millions of people, not only in the US but much further afield, know of George Floyd, barely a handful know the name Collins Khoza. Floyd and Khoza were brutally murdered within a few weeks of each other, both by police action. The startling difference between the two murders was…

31 Aug 2020 10AM 2 min

LETTER: We will not be taken for granted

The Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement has gained much attention, but while it has resonance, particularly in the US, it is a manifestation of a broader issue that is more global. From China, through Russia, the US and into our own country, SA, the issue needs to be restated and…

31 Aug 2020 10AM 1 min

LETTER: A lot is riding on Hermione Cronje

It is now emerging that the newly amended regulation of the Zondo commission will expedite the day of judgment for some high-profile miscreants in the ANC. Hermione Cronje, head of the National Prosecuting Authority’s (NPA) investigating directorate, said recently that the first high-profile arrests would be made in September 2020…

31 Aug 2020 9AM 1 min

SA is geared towards international visitors, so domestic market cannot compensate

Lisa Krohn’s Ashanti Lodge in Cape Town — normally abuzz with backpackers from around the world — today sits largely empty, a sign of how the pandemic has crushed SA's tourist industry. “This place is like a morgue,” she said, contemplating the Victorian-era building's deserted foyer. Following a five-month lockdown,…

31 Aug 2020 8AM 4 min

What the experts say about Abenomics

Tokyo/London — Japanese Prime Minister Abe Shinzo’s decision to step down on Friday because of worsening health will formally put an end to his Abenomics strategy, which tried to revive the world’s third-largest economy after decades of stagnation. So how does Abenomics stack up? Reuters surveyed 18 experts to gauge…

31 Aug 2020 7AM 8 min

Physical damage from Beirut blast could rocket to $4.6bn

The blast that devastated parts of Beirut early in August caused between $3.8bn and $4.6bn in physical damage and the country will need international aid and private investment to recover, according to an initial assessment led by the World Bank. More than 180 people were killed and thousands injured when…

31 Aug 2020 7AM 2 min