Cape Times 2021-06-10

Siphelele Dludla siphelele.dludla@inl.co.za POWER utility Eskom yesterday dampened a buoyant business mood, implementing stage 4 load shedding just hours after the South African Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Sacci) said business leaders had expressed their highest level of confidence in trading conditions in three years. Sacci warned the blackouts could affect business sentiment as an improved business climate and rising exports boosted its confidence index. Investec’s chief economist, Annabel Bishop, said industries trying to localise production were likely to suffer from the insufficient supply of electricity to meet demand. “Load shedding is likely to get worse as demand escalates with the economy trying to recover quickly but being held back by slow or insufficient state provision of necessary services to the private business sector,” she said. The electricity, gas and…

EDWARD WEST edward.west@inl.co.za African Equity Empowerment Investments (AEEI), the diversified majority black-owned investment group, yesterday denied that a call option claimed by investee partner company BT Communications Services South Africa was capable of being exercised. AEEI, which is controlled by Sekunjalo Investment Holdings, is an indirect shareholder in BT Communications Services South Africa (BTSA) through its 100 percent shareholding in Kilomix Investments, which owns 30 percent of BTSA. AEEI’s denial of the call option comes after BTSA said it wished to terminate its relationship with Seku- njalo through the call-option, after an alleged misrepresentation to Parliament’s standing committee on finance. In terms of the shareholders agreement entered into between BT Limited (BT) (formerly British Telecom), BTSA, Kilomix Investments and AEEI on November 4, 2008, BT had a call…

Siphelele Dludla siphelele.dludla@inl.co.za NATIONAL carrier SAA will be sharing the proposed transfer of R2.7 billion with its subsidiaries in order to help them boost their financial position as the airline emerges from the business rescue process. The Department of Public Enterprises (DPE) yesterday told Parliament that the success of SAA’s business rescue plan depended on the financial and operational health of its subsidi- aries. DPE acting director-general Melanchton Makobe said SAA subsidiaries were facing financial challenges due to SAA being put into business rescue in December 2019. SAA was allocated a R10.5 billion bailout to cover its business rescue process, which was concluded at the end of April. Makobe also said that Covid-19 restrictions imposed on international and domestic travel had impacted on SAA subsidiaries’ operations. “If…

Dineo Faku dineo.faku@inl.co.za SANLAM, South Africa’s biggest insurance company, closed stronger on the JSE as the market cheered the group’s strong operational performance for the four months ended April compared to a year earlier. Among the highlights for the period was the 20 percent increase in new business volumes, up 81 percent in the Value of New Business, the more than doubling in net fund inflows, and the strong performance of the African General Insurance business. Sanlam said the current rate of new business growth had received a boost from improved savings due to the Covid-19 pandemic shifting spending patterns. “In due course we would expect this supportive situation to normalise and therefore expect the growth in new business volumes to moderate at some point,” Sanlam said. Net…

EDWARD WEST edward.west@inl.co.za STOR-AGE, the only self-storage specialist real estate investment trust (Reit) listed on the JSE, lifted its final dividend 4 percent higher than the interim dividend to 54.08 cents as it continued to outperform the sector and JSE indices. Rental income and net property income up 19.3 percent and 20.2 percent, respectively, for the year to March 31. Like-for-like rental income increased 8.6 percent in the South African portfolio, and 6.3 percent in the UK properties. Total occupancy was at 90.1 percent. The investment property value increased 12.3 percent to R7.57 billion. Gearing was low at 24.1 percent. “Since listing in November 2015, the number of properties has grown to 74 from 24 and the value has risen…

SOMEONE close to me received their first Covid-19 vaccination last week, and in telling me about their experience, we both observed how South Africa has risen to the challenge and how we have managed to mobilise our own resources to vaccinate our population. Their experience at one of the main Gauteng vaccination centres was seamless and professional. Not only that, it was providing, in the midst of a global pandemic, many new direct and indirect jobs. From traffic and parking marshalls, to the staff manning check points, to the ushers, nurses administering the injections, to staff constantly sani- tising chairs and other surfaces, there was an entire army of people ensuring that the process was both smooth and safe. In addition, there were uniforms, bibs, signage, booths and many other…