Cape Times 2023-08-17

RUSSIA and South Africa were discus- sing joint projects in the energy sector, including the construction of a gas power plant and supplies of Russian liquefied natural gas (LNG) for new generating capacities, the Russian Energy Ministry said in a statement yesterday. Bilateral co-operation was discussed by Russian Deputy Energy Minister Sergey Mochalnikov and South African ambassador to Russia Mzuvukile Jeff Maqetuka shortly before a BRICS ministerial meeting on energy, to be held in Johannesburg on August 18. “Our countries are interested in developing mutually beneficial co-operation in the energy sector. Today, we are working out with our SApartners the possibility of building a gas power plant. We are already discussing the supply of equipment, the possibility of organising the supply of Russian LNG for effective operation of new generating…

THE FNB HOUSE Price Index growth slowed to 1.1% year-on-year in July, down from 1.6% in June in line with falling buying activity, with mortgage volumes now tracking closer to pre-pandemic levels and more sellers having to lower their asking prices. The average bond amount, estimated from deeds data, has declined by about 3% this year, marking the first decline in 14 years, the bank and financial services group’s senior economist Siphamandla Mkhwanazi said yesterday in the FNB Property Barometer. While the trend for house prices is downward at present, the building of homes in terms of units has been on an upward trend since 2010, when compared with non-residential buildings, and alterations and additions. Pam Golding Properties CEO Andrew Golding said on Tuesday that in terms of units, the…

ADVANCED Health’s share price shot up 28.95% to close at 98 cents on the JSE yesterday as the price narrowed the gap between that at which the group is being taken over and yesterday’s “Clean Out Dividend” announcement. At 97c the share was trading at levels it had last seen as long as four years ago. And the price had already escalated dramatically by nearly 90% from last month, when the price rocketed immediately after controlling shareholders of the day hospital group, led by chairperson Alfred Grillenberger, made an offer to buy out the minority shareholders. As reasons for the buyout offer, the controlling shareholders said that after almost a decade on the JSE, the company had not been able to reach a goal of accessing institutional capital, especially…

NEPI ROCKCASTLE distributable earnings a share for the six months to June 30 are expected to be about 28.50 euro cents, an approximate 24.8% increase from the distribution per share for the six months to June 30, 2022, of 22.83 euro cents. The group, the biggest owner and operator of shopping centres in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE), with a presence in nine countries and a portfolio worth €6.6 billion (R138bn as at December 31, saw its share price escalate 4.20% to close at R118 on the JSE yesterday. The share price, in contrast to the shares of many real estate investment trusts that have been negatively impacted by globally of high interest rates and inflation and weak growth, has risen more than 22% over 12 months.…

Safaricom’s M-Pesa mobile money service went live in Ethiopia yesterday, in a boost to the Kenyan telecoms operator as it seeks to kick-start growth in one of Africa’s biggest economies. Safaricom, which is part owned by South Africa’s Vodacom and Britain’s Vodafone, launched its voice and data network in Ethiopia last year and has signed up more than two million active users. Safaricom introduced M-Pesa in Kenya in 2007. The service has grown to become the company’s biggest moneymaker and is also offered in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Egypt, Ghana, Kenya, Lesotho, Mozambique and Tanzania. “M-Pesa is known to be a game-changer for financial inclusion,” said Stanley Njoroge, Safaricom Ethiopia’s interim CEO. “We will continue to broaden the services our customers receive from the M-Pesa platform.” Safaricom became the…

Origin is now becoming a factor in the diamond industry, according to the CIBJO Diamond Commission, which released a special report yesterday. CIBJO is the World Jewellery Confederation, representing all those earning their livelihoods from jewellery, gemstones and precious metals. The report was released ahead of the 2023 CIBJO Congress to be held in Jaipur, India. The special report addresses recent claims that technologies have developed that are able to accurately identify the exact location at which a rough diamond has been mined. CIBJO Diamond Commission president Udi Sheintal said: “We can only state with confidence is what is known at present,” noting a May 2023 study by the Gemological Institute of America that declared that to date there has not been published any scientifically robust study verifying independent provenance…