5 things you need to know about in South Africa today
·11 Jul 2016
Here’s what is happening in and affecting South Africa today:
- Despite Ipsos polling showing the opposite, the ANC says it is confident that it will win the 2016 election in the three major metros in Gauteng, and will easily secure over 50% of the vote nationally. Speaking to Bloomberg, ANC chair, Paul Mashatile said the party was fighting to win in Tshwane. Should the party lose to the DA, South Africa’s capitals would be under the bylaws of the opposition – a significant loss for the ANC.
- South Africa will introduce one of the highest sugar taxes in the world, adding a levy of 2.29 cents per gram of added sugar in popular fizzy drinks – approximately 20% on the price. The tax plan is expected to add as much as R3.9 billion to the fiscus. According to the policy paper, drinks such as 100% fruit juices, bottled water and unsweetened milk will be exempt. The tax is to come into effect on 1 April 2017.
- South Africa’s rand climbed to its strongest in nearly a week against the dollar on Friday, boosted by a search for higher yield as investors bet that interest rates would stay depressed in leading economies. On Monday, the rand was trading at R14.58 to the dollar, R18.91 to the pound and R16.11 to the euro.
- In global news: Asian shares enjoyed a relief rally on Monday as upbeat U.S. jobs data soothed immediate concerns about the health of the world’s largest economy, while the prospect of more policy stimulus helped keep sovereign yields near record lows. Wall Street rallied after a much-larger-than-expected jump in jobs growth confirmed the U.S. economy has regained speed after a first-quarter lull.
- Oil fell on Monday over signs that U.S. shale drillers have adapted to lower prices and on renewed signs of economic weakness in Asia. Brent crude futures were trading at $46.42 per barrel, down 34 cents from their last settlement. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude was down 37 cents at $45.04 a barrel.
In other news: Four terrorist suspects, who have been under police surveillance for a year, have been arrested in Johannesburg, after the Hawks received information they were part of a terrorist cell operating in the country. According to the Hawks, the suspects previously attempted to leave the country to travel to Syria, but were stopped.
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