Cape Times 2023-03-01

OCEANA Group’s canned fish sales volumes increased by 33% in the four months to January 29 to meet strong demand for one of the country’s most affordable source of protein. The group said in a trading statement yesterday that the strong sales volume growth to 3.5 million cartons followed low stock levels in the prior year’s first quarter, that had been caused by supply chain disruptions and the effects of the 2021 civil unrest. The share price rose 5.99% to close at R72.50 on the JSE yesterday, 22.6% higher than the R54.15 it traded at a year before. However, an improvement in canned fish selling price was insufficient to offset cost pressures, in particular the impact of the weaker rand/dollar exchange rate on the cost of imported frozen…

Economists warn that the outlook for the job market remains uncertain THE UNEMPLOYMENT rate in South Africa has eased to its lowest in nearly two years despite economic disruptions caused by acute load shedding that worsened during the last quarter of 2022. However, economists warned that the outlook for the job market remained uncertain as the economy faced significant headwinds from local and global fronts. Data from Statistics South Africa (StatsSA) yesterday showed that the rate of unemployment edged down by 0.2% to 32.7% in the fourth quarter of 2022, from 32.9% in the third quarter, the lowest since the first quarter of 2021. The Quarterly Labour Force Survey revealed that 169 000 jobs were gained in the three months to December 2022, raising the total number of persons…

THE UNRELENTING high cost of living, which has been exacerbated by the latest fuel price hike is pushing the country further towards the precipice of social unrest similar to that seen during the July 2021 riots. This is the warning issued by Efficient Group’s chief economist Dawie Roodt who, yesterday said the fuel price increases were going to push people to the edge as the prices of consumer goods would also be impacted. The latest fuel price increase comes in the wake of steep interest rate hikes announced by the SA Reserve Bank last month, and a massive 18.65% increase in electricity tariffs looming in April. Roodt said that cash-strapped consumers could only take so much of the economic hardships brought about by the energy crisis, high inflation, elevated interest…

WILSON Bayly Holmes-Ovcon increased its order book 19% to R27 billion by the end of the six months to December 31, positioning the construction group well with work for the second half and beyond, the group said yesterday. Headline earnings per share from total operations of 630 cents for the six months represented a turnaround from the headline loss per share of 1 613c in the 2021 financial year. However, no interim dividend was declared. The group said yesterday it was looking forward to a “healthy growth phase” based on work on hand and near-term opportunities, and the outlook for the African operations, while the outlook for the UK operations was positive. “The continuing operations of the group enjoyed a stable six-month period in which the South…

AS THE BUSINESS sector and others see the Minister of Finance’s speech as progressive, especially in light of the R254 billion Eskom debt-relief package, the golden thread will be eroded by the inappropriate appointment of the new CEO. State-owned enterprises (SOEs) experience poor governance, which is conducive to rent-seeking and corruption, especially among the political elite and some businesses. A fresh approach to achieving effective governance must be envisioned in light of the rapid departure of André de Ruyter, the former Eskom CEO. The lack of innovation weakens governance, institutions and regulation, limiting the ability of SOEs to compete globally and attract investment. This necessitates a radical reform of the system. However, in development economics, this implies that pre-existing institutional conditions greatly influence reform efforts. Establishing an innovative process…

LOCAL agricultural organisation Agri SA said yesterday it was distressed by the decrease of 12 000 jobs in the agricultural sector. The comment came after Statistics South Africa (StatsSA) reported the Quarterly Labour Force Survey for the last quarter of last year. Johan Wege, the chairperson of Agri SA’s Centre of Excellence for Labour, said although the loss of jobs was marginal for now, it pointed to the increasingly challenging environment in which farmers operated. “The sector has shown itself to be remarkably resilient and was counted among the best performing sectors even at the height of the Covid-19 pandemic. “But the tide is turning for one of the country’s most labour-intensive sectors – rising input costs, endemic load shedding, and crumbling infrastructure is placing severe strain on the…