{"id":851786,"date":"2026-02-23T08:03:04","date_gmt":"2026-02-23T06:03:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/?p=851786"},"modified":"2026-02-23T08:03:46","modified_gmt":"2026-02-23T06:03:46","slug":"new-gambling-tax-on-the-cards-for-south-africa-and-bad-news-for-petrol-prices-next-week","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/5-things\/851786\/new-gambling-tax-on-the-cards-for-south-africa-and-bad-news-for-petrol-prices-next-week\/","title":{"rendered":"New gambling tax on the cards for South Africa, and bad news for petrol prices next week"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The rand appreciated slightly on Friday following the release of a higher-than-expected US inflation report for December.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Investors were also monitoring growing geopolitical tensions between the United States and Iran. The rand was trading at 16.08 against the dollar, which was approximately a 0.4% increase from Thursday’s close, after remaining relatively stable earlier in the session. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The US dollar showed little movement against a range of currencies following the announcement that the Personal Consumption Expenditure (PCE) index, the Federal Reserve’s preferred measure of inflation, rose by 0.4% in December on a month-over-month basis. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

This exceeded economists’ expectations of a 0.3% increase. The rand is often influenced by global factors, such as US monetary policy and economic data. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

US President Donald Trump warned Iran that it needs to reach an agreement regarding its nuclear program or face serious consequences, suggesting a 10-day deadline before possible US action.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Analysts noted that the US’s stance towards Iran is causing concern among investors, as it could potentially disrupt oil production.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Brent crude oil prices climbed to $72.00 per barrel overnight. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

“This situation could keep inflationary pressures high and affect interest rates, which in turn would negatively impact stock markets,” analysts stated. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

On the Johannesburg Stock Exchange, the Top-40 index was last reported to be up 1.3%.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As of Monday, 23 February, the rand is trading at R16.02 to the dollar, R21.65 to the pound, and R18.93 to the euro. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Gold is currently valued at $5,156.8 per ounce, while oil prices have risen to $71.02 per barrel.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

5 important things happening in South Africa today<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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New restrictions on gambling advertising:<\/strong>\u00a0The Department of Trade, Industry and Competition (DTIC) is developing new rules for gambling advertising, expected to be published by July. The National Treasury has proposed a 20% tax on gross gaming revenue, while the National Gambling Board (NGB) is pushing for better enforcement of advertising laws. A National Gambling Amendment Bill before Parliament suggests reforms to position the NGB as a regulator, enhance national oversight, create a register of unlawful operators, and improve player protection. [Moneyweb<\/a>]<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Bad news for petrol users: <\/strong>Fuel recoveries have worsened in the third week of February, suggesting that South Africa is likely to see petrol and diesel prices rise in March 2026. Despite earlier forecasts of a slight price drop, diesel prices have been under-recovering, while petrol recoveries remain precarious. The Central Energy Fund\u2019s forecasts indicate a negative outlook for prices next month, mainly due to rising oil prices. [MyBroadband<\/a>]<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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New<\/strong> R3.2 billion Afrikaans University:<\/strong> Construction of Akademia\u2019s R3.2 billion Christian Afrikaans university began in January 2026, aiming to be a world-class institution. Located on a 220-hectare site in Mooiplaats, 8 kilometres from Solomon Mahlangu Drive, the campus will accommodate 5,000 undergraduate and 1,500 postgraduate students. Funding comes from students’ tuition and accommodation fees. [Newsday<\/a>]<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Pick n Pay CEO takes on Boxer:<\/strong> Sean Summers, the Group CEO of Pick n Pay, is set to become the chairperson of the discount retailer Boxer. Although Boxer is listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE) in 2024, it is primarily owned by Pick n Pay. The value retailer has emerged as one of the few successes for the group, which has posted cumulative losses of billions since 2024. [BusinessTech<\/a>]<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Harmful products used by South Africans: <\/strong>New research from the University of the Free State (UFS) reveals that menstrual products used by millions of South Africans contain hormone-disrupting chemicals, despite being marketed as \u201cfree from harmful chemicals.\u201d The study found every tested sanitary pad and pantyliner had at least two endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs), raising concerns about consumer safety and long-term health risks. [Mail&Guardian<\/a>]<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Here are five important things happening in and affecting South Africa on Monday, 23 February 2026.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":127,"featured_media":851795,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[20398],"tags":[18993,16632],"class_list":["post-851786","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-5-things","tag-5-important-things-happening-in-south-africa-today","tag-5-things"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/851786","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/127"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=851786"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/851786\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":851796,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/851786\/revisions\/851796"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/851795"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=851786"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=851786"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=851786"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}