{"id":853808,"date":"2026-03-13T08:05:37","date_gmt":"2026-03-13T06:05:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/?p=853808"},"modified":"2026-03-13T08:06:21","modified_gmt":"2026-03-13T06:06:21","slug":"iconic-retailer-shrinking-stores-in-south-africa-and-good-news-for-anyone-wanting-to-invest-in-new-dstv-owner","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/5-things\/853808\/iconic-retailer-shrinking-stores-in-south-africa-and-good-news-for-anyone-wanting-to-invest-in-new-dstv-owner\/","title":{"rendered":"Iconic retailer shrinking stores in South Africa, and good news for anyone wanting to invest in new DStv owner"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The rand weakened on Thursday due to the escalating conflict in the Middle East and rising oil prices, which heightened inflation fears and dampened investor confidence. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The rand was trading at 16.5325 against the dollar, down approximately 0.3% from the previous day’s close.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Recently, the currency has been under pressure, declining more than 3% last week alone, as increasing oil prices pose a significant challenge for South Africa, a net energy importer. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Meanwhile, the Johannesburg Stock Exchange has experienced a 10% decline since the start of March, potentially ending a record 14-month streak of gains with the market on track for its first monthly decline.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Iran warned that the world should prepare for oil prices reaching $200 per barrel following attacks on merchant ships by its forces on Wednesday. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In response, the International Energy Agency urged a substantial release of strategic reserves to mitigate one of the worst oil shocks since the 1970s.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Analysts mentioned that the rand is expected to remain volatile until there is more clarity regarding the duration and scale of the conflict. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Additionally, the South African Reserve Bank released current account data, indicating that the country achieved its first current account surplus in over two years during the last quarter of 2025, aided by rising precious metal prices.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In January, South Africa’s mining output increased by 4.6% year-on-year, while manufacturing output saw a decrease of 0.7% during the same period. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Economists noted that the domestic manufacturing sector continues to face several challenges, including elevated US tariffs that were only eased at the end of February.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Furthermore, South Africa’s benchmark 2035 government bond was slightly weaker, with the yield rising by 1.6 basis points to 8.635%.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As of Friday, 13 March, the rand is trading at R16.78 to the dollar, R22.38 to the pound, and R19.31 to the euro. Gold is currently valued at $5,100.96 per ounce, while oil prices have risen to $100.2 per barrel.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

5 important things happening in South Africa today<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Big changes on the cards for major fashion retailer stores:<\/strong> The restructuring of Edgars’ space in select malls showcases how landlords are reducing oversized floor areas that are a remnant of a different retail era. This effort aims to increase trading density and better align retail space with current demand. [BusinessDay<\/a>]<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n

Good news for South Africans who want to invest in DSTV’s new owner:<\/strong> South African investors will soon have the opportunity to purchase shares of Groupe Canal+ on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE). In its presentation of the 2025 annual results and strategic update, the new owner of MultiChoice announced its plans to list on the stock exchange in the near future. This development comes just three months after MultiChoice was delisted from the JSE. [MyBroadband<\/a>]<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n

Soldiers deployed in South Africa:<\/strong> The army has established a strong presence in the eastern region of Gauteng. Illegal mining and the related crime issues are significant problems in communities such as Cloverdene in Benoni. To assist the police in combating gang violence and illegal mining, soldiers have been deployed to various communities. This military deployment will last for one year and will cover five of the nine provinces.[ENCA<\/a>]<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n

R4 trillion needed for South Africa’s infrastructure: <\/strong>South Africa has faced three decades of underinvestment in infrastructure, resulting in crises such as load shedding, logistics bottlenecks, and water shortages. The quality of roads, bridges, and passenger rail has deteriorated, with the Gautrain being the only world-class infrastructure. To address this, the country plans to invest significantly in infrastructure upgrades, leveraging private-sector capital and expertise. However, a R4 trillion funding gap remains, and the government’s R1 trillion investment over the next three years is just a starting point. [DailyInvestor<\/a>]<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n

Former Steinhoff auditor in trouble:<\/strong> Former Steinhoff auditor Hein Odendaal could avoid jail time by paying a R2 million fine; otherwise, he faces four years in prison for his role in the country’s largest corporate scandal. The Pretoria Specialised Commercial Crime Court issued this ruling after Odendaal entered a plea agreement related to the fraud case that led to the collapse of the multi-billion-rand company in 2017. Odendaal, 68, was accused of failing to report fraudulent activities by executives who inflated the company’s profits and assets through fictitious transactions. [Moneyweb<\/a>]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Here are five important things happening in South Africa on Friday, 13 March 2026.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":127,"featured_media":853820,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[20398],"tags":[18993,853],"class_list":["post-853808","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-5-things","tag-5-important-things-happening-in-south-africa-today","tag-south-africa"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/853808","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=853808"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/853808\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":853822,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/853808\/revisions\/853822"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/853820"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=853808"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=853808"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=853808"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}