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Outrage as two cellular licences awarded... Motor industry strikes the wal... Neither fish, flesh nor fowl as governme... Budget cuts hit SA arms industr... The lull before the inflation stor... Signs of frustration in strike actio... Lower rentals boost flagging CBD occupa... Transforming DBSA cuts back, ups its len... Bids for SA lottery start rolling i... |
THE WEEK AHEADMONDAY: Japan's new prime minister, Keizo Obuchi, will get down to the business of reflating the world's second-largest economy, banking on former prime minister Kiichi Miyazawa to pull Japan out of its worst recession since Second World War. Worryingly, 78-year-old Miyazawa has expressed his own doubts about whether he can do the job, claiming the potential for making errors of judgment at his age. Financial markets have shown little concern about the age question. Japan's revitalised opposition is confident of forcing an early general election and financial markets are likely to punish Obuchi and the Japanese yen if he dithers in taking drastic action. TUESDAY: The Reserve Bank is due to announce July gold and foreign exchange reserves figures. Key to the numbers will be the size of the recently heavily utilised forward book and the amount of tapping of foreign credit lines. The forward book has been cited as a particular major area of concern for investors. The Reserve Bank previously indicated it planned to reduce its exposure in this area but has been forced back into the market since the speculative attack on the rand started. Bank governor Chris Stals said on Thursday the Bank had spent almost nothing in the foreign exchange market in July. Since July 6, the rand actually recovered about 1% of its value against a basket of trading currencies.
WEDNESDAY: Anglo American Industrial Corporation will release interim results today. Others reporting this week include Standard Bank of South Africa, which kicks off reporting financial service results with its interim numbers on Tuesday. The figures will not yet show the full effect on the bank of the recent rand crisis and consequent hike in interest rates. Fedsure will announce interim results this week and Gensec is due to release full year figures. Iscor will provide annual figures.
THURSDAY: Two new IT listings come to the market today -- one in development stage and the other a venture capital listing. E-Data Ltd will come to the venture capital sector, placing 5-million shares at 100c. Idion Technologies will list 9.6-million shares at 50c in the development capital sector. FRIDAY: It is going to be a long week for President Nelson Mandela and SA's diplomatic entourage, with three foreign heads of state coming to town. Swiss President Flavio Cotti is in the country from tomorrow, Palestinian President Yasser Arafat arrives on Tuesday and Kenyan President Daniel Arap Moi visits from Thursday. Friday is unlikely to provide many fireworks as South Africans in all likelihood head home for a long weekend with Monday August 10 granted as a public holiday.
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