Star 2022-06-29

PUBLIC Enterprises Minister Pravin Gordhan called a surprise media briefing late yesterday to reassure South Africans that the power will remain on as the country headed to Stage 6 load shedding. A total blackout is where the transmission grid completely collapses and he said the country was not in any danger of that. He said that he expected Eskom’s illegal wage strike to end today, and this was the main cause of power deficit amid winter. Gordhan largely blamed the worsening energy situation on the strike, which had started on June 22 by some Eskom workers. He spent a long time detailing incidents of intimidation to staff, which had led to 90 percent of the staff not being able to attend their duties at the power stations and staying…

GRINDROD’S share price increased by 6.3 percent to R9.40 yesterday morning, after it flagged a strong performance in the first five months of 2022. The share closed at R9.11 on the JSE yesterday. The group said in a pre-close update yesterday that it expects headline earnings per share to improve by at least 100 percent in the year to June 30, compared with 0.7 cents for the previous corresponding period. Earnings and operational performance in port and terminals, and logistics businesses had been pleasing, underpinned by “signifi- cant volume growth”, the group said. The bank, which is being sold to Afri- can Bank for R1.5 billion, also healthy earnings’ growth. Proceeds of R150 million from non-core asset disposals were applied to settle private equity debt.…

MARKET sentiment took a turn for the worse yesterday afternoon as South Africa’s energy crisis deepened with the electricity supply outlook falling to its weakest in two-and-a-half years. Eskom yesterday said that the national energy supply in South Africa had deteriorated further due to (several) unplanned breakdowns, and an ongoing industrial action, forcing it to cut power supply for many more hours a day. The struggling utility implemented Stage 6 load shedding from 4pm until 10pm last night, returning to Stage 4 load shedding from 10pm until midnight and reduced to Stage 2 until 5am this morning. The unstable electricity supply schedule would then be repeated for the rest of today but the risk of a higher stage of load shedding remains high, Eskom warned. This…

COMMUNITY services, manufacturing and mining industries in South Africa managed to create thousands of jobs in the first quarter of 2022, amid a gloomy labour market as the country’s unemployment rate remains the highest in the world. Statistics South Africa (StatsSA) yesterday said 42 000 jobs were created in the formal non-agricultural sector between January and March compared with the previous three months. According to the Quarterly Em- ployment Statistics survey, total employment increased by 42 000, or 0.4 percent, quarter-on-quarter, bringing the level of total employment to about 10.1 million people. StatsSA said the increase in jobs was largely due to increases in the community services with 69 000 jobs, manufacturing with 8 000 jobs and mining with 2 000. Growth in…

SHARES in Impala Platinum (Implats) rose after it landed a “historic” five-year wage deal with the Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union (Amcu), which secures stability at its Rustenburg and Marula Platinum operations. The shares of the producer of platinum group metals increased 2.9 percent to R183.61 in midday trade yesterday, having risen 155.81 percent over the past three years. It closed at R181 on the JSE yesterday. The settlement was effective from July 1, and marked the first time Implats has secured and signed a wage agreement before it expires. Amcu is the majority union at Impala Rustenburg and Marula, and Implats’s recognition agreement with Amcu dates back to when it was signed…

ACCELERATE Property Fund declared a final distribution of 21.98 cents per share for the year to March 31 compared with nothing the year before, as the company continues with its strategy to sell non-core assets to strengthen its financial position. The company, which includes Fourways Mall, Cedar Square Shopping Centre and the Portside offices in Cape Town among its prominent and diversified assets, said revenue from continuing and discontinued operations came to R993.3 million in the year from R1 billion the previous year. Rental assistance granted was well down to R35.13m from R182.52m. The diluted gain per share came to 6.44c from a loss of 72.85c previously, following a consistent, if staggered improvement in trading and performance post-Covid-19. Accelerate has sold R3.2bn of assets since 2018, the…