Bad news for parents in South Africa’s richest province, and Eskom warns of more electricity price hikes
The rand showed slight improvement on Wednesday as it attempted to recover from an almost two-month low. Investors were looking for fresh insights into the global and domestic economic outlook.
The rand was trading at 17.425 per dollar, up about 0.6%, after experiencing a decline of more than 1% on Tuesday due to weaker gold prices, which affected other commodity-linked currencies as well.
S&P Global reported that South Africa’s private sector activity contracted for the first time in seven months in October, as businesses faced a renewed downturn in output and orders.
However, traders focused on the domestic market appeared to overlook this news, as the index indicated that, despite the downturn, business sentiment remained positive. About 34% of firms anticipate an increase in activity over the next 12 months.
The local economic calendar is relatively quiet for the rest of the week, with the main focus on October’s foreign reserves data, set to be released on Friday, which will provide further clues about the health of the economy.
Additionally, the Johannesburg Stock Exchange’s Top 40 index also attempted to recover following a decline of more than 2% on Tuesday.
On Thursday, 6 November, the rand was trading at R17.39 to the dollar, R22.71 to the pound and R20.00 to the euro. Oil was trading slightly lower at $63.71 a barrel.
5 important things happening in South Africa today
Bad news for parents in Gauteng: Over 600 quintile 5 public schools in Gauteng will face significant subsidy cuts starting in April 2026, with funding dropping from R879 to R315 per learner. The CEO of the Federation of Governing Bodies of South African Schools warned that parents will have to play more to cover the shortfall if the department does not intervene. [Daily Maverick]
Eskom warns of more electricity price hikes: Eskom’s group CEO has flagged serious flaws in negotiated electricity pricing discounts for energy-intensive firms, saying they shift the real costs onto households and the utility. [Business Day]
Pick n Pay rolls out new stores: Pick n Pay (PnP) has teamed up with Vivo Energy Botswana to introduce “Pick n Pay GO,” a new 24-hour convenience store concept aimed at the forecourt market in Botswana. The first store is now open at the Shell Village service station, with additional locations set to open in the coming months. [Moneyweb]
School placement warning: The Gauteng Department of Education (GDE) has warned parents about alleged fraudsters offering placements in schools in the province for the 2026 school year in exchange for bribes. [MyBroadband]
Makate vs Vodacom battle is over: Vodacom has announced that it has finally settled the Please Call Me matter with idea-man Kenneth Makate, reaching an out-of-court agreement—the details of which were not revealed. The terms of the agreement were not revealed, with Vodacom saying only that it will be accounted for in the group’s interim results for the six-month period ended 30 September 2025. [BusinessTech]
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