Business Day
SA faces climate bill of R3.7-trillion
South Africa needs about R3.7-trillion in investments over the next decade to adapt to climate change and mitigate the effects, an issue that is all the more pressing since about $135bn of the country’s exports are destined for net-zero-committed...
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Jobless tide rises, activity stagnates
South Africa’s unemployment rate remained stubbornly high in the third quarter, particularly among the youth, highlighting how the economy is growing far too slowly to create jobs for the thousands of people entering the labour market. As South...
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Mines may be exempt from lung disease suits
Health minister Aaron Motsoaledi has proposed replacing South Africa’s apartheid-era laws for compensating miners who contract lung diseases with new legislation that includes potentially controversial measures to protect companies from class action...
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ANC faces tough talks after setback
The ANC’s national leadership will meet this week to determine its approach to coalition negotiations after the party’s worst electoral performance yet, as political formations begin positioning themselves to govern hundreds of hung municipal councils...
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ANC loses its grip on the major cities
The ANC is on course for a bruising result in South Africa’s major cities, and if its poor electoral performance continues it will soon have to scramble to secure coalition deals to retain a role in governing the country’s councils. Early returns and...
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Water crisis takes centre stage in battle for Joburg
Political leaders cast their votes countrywide yesterday as the battle for control of South Africa’s 257 municipalities intensified, with service delivery failures, particularly persistent water shortages, emerging as a big election...
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Agoa fallout exposes ANC-DA policy rift
The US’s decision to withdraw South Africa’s African Growth & Opportunity Act (Agoa) benefits has exposed divisions between the ANC and DA over foreign policy, with the ANC alleging an attempt to influence voters as it faces mounting electoral...
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US to cut SA out of Agoa trade pact
President Donald Trump has notified the US Congress and the governments of South Africa and Rwanda of his intention to terminate the countries’ eligibility for the African Growth and Opportunity Act (Agoa) trade preference programme effective January...
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ANC and DA centralise coalition talks
The office of the ANC secretary-general will oversee the party’s coalition negotiations after Wednesday’s local government elections, Parks Tau says, as the party prepares for a vote in which no party is expected to command a national majority. Trade,...
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Economy 5.3% bigger as Stats SA widens its net
The rebasing of South Africa’s GDP has left the economy 5.3% bigger at R8.044-trillion in 2025 compared with the previously stated R7.642trillion for the year, with the contribution of four industries rising while manufacturing has extended its...
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BLSA: metro decay risks eroding economic gains
South Africa is making progress with its structural reforms, but the continued dysfunction at municipalities such as Johannesburg risks deterring much-needed investment, Business Leadership South Africa (BLSA) warns. At the release of its latest...
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Morocco beats SA for investment
Morocco’s aggressive drive to build its industrial base around its automotive industry has seen it overtake South Africa in the rankings of Africa’s most attractive investment destinations, piling pressure on Pretoria to up its game in a sector that...
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Moody’s could upgrade SA rating within a year
South Africa could secure a credit rating upgrade from Moody’s within a year or so, after the ratings agency said the medium-term budget policy statement (MTBPS) tabled by finance minister Enoch Godongwana last week in parliament was credit positive,...
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AI lags as African CEOs focus on cyberthreats
While companies and governments worldwide grappled with a hacking scare last week, a KPMG survey found that nearly a third of African CEOs cited cybersecurity and data security as leading threats to growth. The publication of KPMG’s 2026 Africa CEO...
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Money the top cause of mental distress
Financial stress is the leading contributor to poor mental health across all generations in South Africa, with 59%-66% of respondents surveyed by private healthcare group Mediclinic citing it as a cause. The data was published as consumers grapple...
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Godongwana pledges to maintain fiscal discipline
Finance minister Enoch Godongwana struck a cautiously optimistic tone in his medium-term budget speech yesterday, saying the economy had withstood geopolitical turmoil relatively well. This was despite a cut to the 2026 growth forecast, with...
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South Africa sets 5% tariff to save newsprint industry
South Africa’s trade authorities have imposed a 5% tariff on imports of newsprint, in rolls or sheets, to save the domestic print industry from extinction. The decision follows a request by JSE-listed multinational paper and pulp producer Sappi, whose...
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Ramaphosa weighs relief as the cost of living soars
President Cyril Ramaphosa says the National Treasury is “giving consideration” to potential interventions to ease the heavy cost-of-living burden forced on South Africans, mainly by the geopolitical turmoil and rising global oil prices. Potential...
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Mbeki faces scrutiny over amnesty plan
In September 2001, former president Thabo Mbeki was advised to establish a presidential commission comprising representatives of all parties to the apartheid conflict to investigate and fully document what had transpired and to consider collective...
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ConCourt election ruling a huge victory for ANC
The Constitutional Court’s order overturning the decision by the Electoral Commission of South Africa (IEC) to exclude 181 ANC candidates from contesting the upcoming local elections has saved the party from administrative chaos, but 2,093 candidates...
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SA ‘losing illicit-trade battle’
British American Tobacco (BAT) says criminal syndicates marshalling South Africa’s illicit economy continue to act with impunity despite the government’s measures to clamp down on the criminality decimating legitimate local industries. According to...
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Millions go hungry as costs rocket
South Africa’s food inflation may have eased, but 9.4-million people experienced hunger in 2025, with 14.7% of the population going hungry as rising living costs put nutritious food beyond the reach of many households. The South African food security...
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City of Joburg turns to the private sector
The City of Johannesburg is exploring options to partner with the private sector to meet the increasing demand for water in the city, whose residents consume about 1.6-billion litres a day. Persistent water shortages, caused by a range of problems...
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Violence puts state under pressure
Police have arrested 30 people in connection with last week’s violent anti-migrant protests as the government moves to restore law and order in parts of KwaZulu-Natal and Gauteng. The violence is the latest in a series of attacks on foreign nationals,...
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High court sets aside BEE legal sector code
Trade, industry & competition minister Parks Tau has suffered a major blow after the high court in Pretoria reviewed and set aside the promulgation of the broad-based BEE legal sector code aimed at transforming the sector. This means the first...
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AU body refuses to label SA ‘xenophobic’
The AU’s human rights commission has rejected claims that South Africa is inherently xenophobic despite a resurgence of attacks on foreign nationals this year. The African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights (ACHPR) coupled the assessment with...
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Gloves off in Joburg election debate
The leaders of the ANC, DA, EFF, IFP and ActionSA clashed in a fiery debate over corruption, coalition politics, immigration and service delivery at a City of Johannesburg leaders debate yesterday. The debate, co-hosted by Business Day, Sowetan and...
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Call to scrap lump-sum payouts
The South African Law Reform Commission has recommended that the government scrap lumpsum payouts for victims of medical negligence and introduce a new compensation system providing patients with structured “pay as you go” settlements. In a...
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‘Not enough done to protect women’
President Cyril Ramaphosa has acknowledged that the government’s response to gender-based violence and femicide has not been enough to prevent women from being killed. Last night he announced four immediate measures, including a national case-recovery...
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US support ‘can stoke racial rift’
The Thabo Mbeki Foundation has warned that growing US support for Afrikaner organisations and their demands for greater cultural and political autonomy risks entrenching the racial divisions South Africa has spent three decades trying to dismantle. In...
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Numsa leaders run out of patience with Irvin Jim
Regional leaders of the National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa (Numsa) have threatened to convene the union’s national executive committee (NEC) themselves or approach the courts to do so after accusing national office bearers of ignoring their...
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Ngqura manganese export revamp could cost R44bn
The relocation and consolidation of South Africa’s manganese exports at the Port of Ngqura to improve efficiency and reduce costs could cost as much as R44bn, with the private sector set to play a leading role in building the terminal and...
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Medical scheme body disputes fee hike plan
One of South Africa’s key medical scheme associations has challenged the industry regulator’s guidance on contribution increases for 2027, saying it risks creating unrealistic expectations among members. The Board of Healthcare Funders (BHF), which...
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‘Send Mbeki’ to fix US-SA breakdown
In what could be seen as a rebuke of President Cyril Ramaphosa’s handling of diplomatic relations between the two countries, US ambassador to South Africa Leo Brent Bozell III has pointed to Ramaphosa’s predecessor Thabo Mbeki as the person best placed...
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Dumping margin of 90% triggers probe
AfriSam and Dangote Cement are set for trade relief after the International Trade Administration Commission of South Africa (Itac) found there is merit in their case against imports from Vietnam and Mozambique, with steep tariffs on the cards. The...
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Cash still king despite R88.5bn in costs a year
Cash remains a big component of South Africa’s payment ecosystem, accounting for about 56% of all consumer transactions by volume and imposing a broader economic cost of about R88.5bn a year, according to a study commissioned and published this week by...
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Pretoria vows not to give in on domestic policy
Pretoria has struck a defiant tone as Washington promised harsher consequences if South Africa does not change course on its affirmative action laws. These include land expropriation, which the US claims marginalises minorities. South Africa ’ s top...
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Harmony toll hits 46 in five years
Harmony Gold, which operates some of the deepest underground mines on Earth, has reported another death at its South African operations, taking the group’s toll over the past five years to 46 as its safety record comes under increased scrutiny. The...
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Bad planning blamed for build backlog
Finance minister Enoch Godongwana has flagged South Africa’s lack of a proper plan as the main reason behind its infrastructure backlog, a key impediment to growing the economy at the 3% required to create much-needed employment. In a keynote address...
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Refinery closures have cost SA R76bn
South Africa spent about R76bn more than it would have importing refined petroleum products between 2021 and 2024 had it not allowed its refining capacity to wither away, exposing the economy to the vulnerability of external shocks. The economy also...
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Chinese cars: WesBank wary of risks
WesBank, one of South Africa’s largest vehicle financiers, says the entry of competitively priced Chinese cars has caused a structural change in the country’s secondhand car market, with prices in that segment coming under pressure. WesBank, owned by...
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Bodycams coming for police
South Africa’s police force might soon be required to wear body cameras, and the fleet of police cars will be fitted with dashboard cameras in a bid to build tighter cases with watertight evidence while protecting the rights of citizens from...
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Dodgy data ‘may have skewed’ huge decline
The health department has conceded that the precipitous decline in childhood vaccination rates it recently published may have been skewed by potentially inaccurate population figures provided by Stats SA. The issue goes to the heart of concerns raised...
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Electoral court rejects UDF bid to extend list deadline
The Electoral Court has struck down a bid by the United Democratic Front Party (UDF) for the Electoral Commission of South Africa (IEC) to extend the deadline for submitting names of ward councillor candidates beyond 28 August. The judgment also has...
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Icasa goes after telcos, WhatsApp
The Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (Icasa) has put over-the-top (OTT) service providers — including multinationals Netflix and WhatsApp, and the country’s telecommunications giants — on notice over the pricing of their...
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Trump signs Agoa, but for just two years
US President Donald Trump has signed a law extending duty-free access to qualifying nations under the African Growth & Opportunity Act (Agoa) to 2028, but this falls far short of the 15 years South Africa was pushing for. It is also not yet clear...
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Businesses pin hopes on election certainty
Business confidence remained subdued in the third quarter as the cloud of geopolitical and global trade uncertainty continued to hang over the private sector, with many companies facing weak demand for their products. Local government elections on...
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Eskom pollution risks vexing World Bank
Resurgent power producer Eskom is risking the ire of the World Bank, which lent it money to build the Medupi power plant on condition it would retrofit the mega coal-fired facility with the technology needed to reduce emissions. The company has...
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Eskom looks to put surplus power to use
Eskom is looking to bring back lost industrial demand, including from the Mozal aluminium smelter in Mozambique, while increasing electricity exports as it seeks customers for surplus generation capacity. In an interview with Business Day, group CEO...
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Price shock adds R56bn to SA fuel bill
Fuel importers have incurred at least R56bn in extra costs since the outbreak of conflict in the Middle East in February sent the price of oil surging and created the largest and most sustained price shock since the 1990 Gulf War, with consumers...
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IDC looks to bring in private investors
The Industrial Development Corporation (IDC) aims to introduce private shareholding for the first time in its 86-year history to shore up its coffers and enable it to play a bigger role in the bid to reindustrialise South Africa’s economy. While still...
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Tariff pressures drive SA and Brazil into alliance
South Africa and Brazil temporarily put their trade wars on the back burner as they sought to deflect shared pressure from US-imposed tariffs. The two Brics members said yesterday they are seeking to turn their political alignment into deeper economic...
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Northam up for grabs after offer
The race is on to buy Northam Platinum, valued at R122bn on the JSE, after the group said it had received an unsolicited offer from one of its bigger rivals in South Africa. The potential transaction is set to test the market’s appetite for big...
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Joburg’s taxi rank get-up-and-go plan
The City of Johannesburg is looking for private capital to develop key socioeconomic nodes in the inner city, which will include the demolition and rebuilding of the iconic Noord taxi rank, the completion of a delayed drug rehabilitation facility and...
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ANC vows 30% cut in municipal debt
The ANC, launching its local government elections manifesto yesterday, has targeted a reduction of municipal debt owed to Eskom and the country’s water boards by at least 30% by 2031. The pledge seeks to address a debt crisis that has more than...
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Business to pitch in to rescue Joburg
The business sector has pledged resources to support government efforts to address Johannesburg’s deepening financial and governance crisis, finance minister Enoch Godongwana says, as the country’s biggest city becomes the focus of a new phase of...
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US agency reverses ban on SA research funding
The US National Institutes of Health (NIH) has ended its ban on funding South African research projects, opening the door for local scientists to apply for its grants once more. South African researchers, who are at the forefront of global research...
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Power price rejig to ‘grow economy’
South Africa is overhauling its electricity pricing system to address high tariffs, which have soared more than six times the rate of inflation since 2007, hurting industries and eroding households’ disposable incomes. Though electricity supply has...
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Ramaphosa shifts focus to Sadc unity
President Cyril Ramaphosa yesterday moved to paper over the cracks resulting from the recent wave of anti-immigration protest actions in South Africa, calling for more cross-border trade and investment. More than 100,000 African immigrants fled or...
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Top DA MP’s firm faces forex probe
An explosive affidavit by the Reserve Bank alleges that Kastelo, a fintech group founded by DA federal finance chair Mark Burke, misrepresented its business activities to authorities in a bid to “circumvent” the country’s exchange controls. A legal...
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Standard Bank eyes R50bn record annual profit
Standard Bank paid its biggest interim dividend yet after reporting a record R26bn interim profit yesterday, putting it on course for a bumper fullyear performance as group CEO Sim Tshabalala prepares to hand over the reins to a new leader next...
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Sars targets Maumela matriarch in tax probe
The South African Revenue Service (Sars) has acted against Morgan Maumela’s mother, Mboneni Benedicta Maumela, over unpaid taxes of up to R40m as law enforcement tightens the noose on the family at the receiving end of dubious state contracts. Sars...
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GNU gets blame as joblessness spirals
Young South Africans were again the worst affected as unemployment scaled higher in the second quarter of 2026, with community and social service, mining, agriculture and manufacturing sectors shedding the most jobs. Just three months ahead of...
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Slow going in reforms to fix spatial inequality
About 80% of the reforms outlined in the second phase of Operation Vulindlela to address South Africa’s spatial inequality are either delayed or off track, underscoring the Herculean task of tackling the lingering legacy of apartheid. Following the...
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IDC warns: growth engine is collapsing
A study by the Industrial Development Corporation (IDC) warns that the dearth of private sector investment has become a structural constraint on industrial development, limiting the economy’s ability to generate sustainable employment and strengthen...
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Defence begs for R9bn to keep going
Defence & military veterans minister Angie Motshekga has pleaded with the National Treasury to provide the department with R9bn to ensure the smooth operation of the army. The cash-strapped army’s operations, locally and regionally, have been severely...
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JSE lays out pan-African digital vision
The JSE is assembling the building blocks to establish a pan-African digital marketplace and digital-asset capabilities within the next five years as Africa’s largest stock exchange plots its next evolution after almost 140 years in existence. The...
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Tighter crypto rules to curb illicit flows
The National Treasury and the Reserve Bank have introduced new proposals to direct cross-border transactions in crypto as part of a broader effort to strengthen the oversight of financial activities and curb emerging risks associated with virtual...
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Land reform law under scrutiny
A dispute that once threatened to unravel the government of national unity (GNU) reaches the Western Cape High Court today with the DA asking judges to strike down a law its own cabinet minister is now legally bound to defend. The DA filed papers...
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Minister suspends three Idac allies of Johnson
Justice minister Mmamoloko Kubayi yesterday announced the suspension of three senior Investigating Directorate Against Corruption (Idac) employees, all close allies of former head Andrea Johnson. Chief investigator Dylan Perumal, tasked with a...
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Standard Bank, Pepkor open exploratory talks
Asset- and cash-rich Standard Bank and major retailer Pepkor, whose footprint spans 6,000 stores, are exploring a possible partnership that might see them launch an offensive in the personal banking industry and dethrone Capitec. Business Day can...
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Treasury blinks in municipal standoff
The National Treasury’s capitulation in agreeing to release the balance of R7.1bn it had withheld from 49 municipalities over their continued failure to comply with the Municipal Finance Management Act sends the message that local governments can flout...
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Imports push local sugar growers to the brink
The sugar industry has raised the alarm over a surge in imports threatening the survival of local producers, calling on trade, industry & competition minister Parks Tau to urgently finalise the update to the tariff mechanism so that it reflects market...
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