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Stals ends all hopes for early death of ... Record sales that flatter to deceiv... It's showtime again in SA for swinging ... Troubled birth predicted for new labour ... Blacks set to eclipse Afrikaners... |
BUSINESS DIGESTSAMSUNG DEAL Multichoice Africa has named Samsung, the giant Korean electronics group, as the third manufacturer of digital decoders for its satellite TV venture. The deal comes in time for the Christmas season which is expected to boost the number of subscribers to Multichoice's DSTV from 65 000 to about 100 000. A Samsung spokesman says there are no immediate plans to manufacture decoders in South Africa, but the group is confident of winning at least one-third of the market dominated by UK's Pace and Panasonic. The Samsung decoders will be priced at R4 000, but further price cuts may follow as competition between suppliers intensifies.
TELKOM'S INTERNET Telkom said on Friday it had launched a new subsidiary to provide Internet-based services, a development which could put it in conflict with Internet service providers already using Telkom lines for their business. Telkom said the subsidiary, Intekom, would "expose all South Africans to the full range of benefits that the Internet has to offer, both as an information resource and as a business tool". Intekom would be wholly owned by Telkom but would operate as an independent unit.
AFRICAN LIFE SURGES Life insurer African Life, which has a strong presence in the black market, has produced strong results for the six months to end-September, continuing its long-standing track record of uninterrupted increases in earnings. Earnings a share during the interim period increased from 16,8c to 21c after a rise in attributable income from R12,9-million to R20,4-million. Total premium income was up to R318-million from R231-million, while investment income rose from R28-million to R43-million. African Life raised the interim dividend from 11,2c to 14c a share. PORTUGUESE LINK Old Mutual has set up a Guernsey-based financial services joint venture with Portugal's third largest bank, Grupo Banco Espirito Santo. Called Novos Navegadores, the venture's initial target will be the SA Portuguese community, estimated at between 750 000 and 1-million people. Many have accumulated funds in Portugal, but have had difficulty maximising these from afar. Novos Navegadores will later expand its market to other Portuguese communities around the world. Old Mutual representatives will sell its products in South Africa and funds will be managed by Old Mutual International Asset Managers. PROBE INTO BOARDS Agriculture Minister Derek Hanekom is planning a full investigation of agricultural marketing monopolies such as Unifruco and Outspan. This follows the passing of the Marketing of Agricultural Products Act by Parliament, which paves the way for the abolition of marketing monopolies in agricultural products.
KELGRAN TALKS END The failure of merger talks between granite firms Kelgran and Kudu Granite could indicate another suitor is in the wings for Kudu, analysts said on Friday. Kelgran announced on Friday its controlling shareholder, Malaysia's Mycom SA, had ended negotiations. A successful deal would have further enlarged Kelgran, which acquired Ketter Granite in July this year.
FESTIVE BOOM The SA Chamber of Business expects Christmas sales to rise by 11,8% this year, adding to the strong sales growth over last year's festive season. Sacob said retail sales for November and December were expected to reach R30-billion, more than R3-billion up on last year's R26,8-billion. Christmas sales grew by 14,5% in 1995 from 1994. ¥ Reports by Business Times staff, Reuter, Sapa-AP-AFP
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