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May 25 2012 13:58
The costs of the first phase of the Gauteng Freeway Improvement Project have increased significantly to almost R90bn, according to a report.
May 24 2012 17:31
The Reserve Bank will maintain current interest rates, and a considerable reduction in the local petrol price is anticipated, says governor Gill Marcus.
May 25 2012 11:36
The JSE has identified and stopped "incorrect" trades from one of its members, and will reverse the trades and lower the session's total value after the close.
Johannesburg - South African construction firm Basil Read Holdings Ltd said on Thursday it expected to report a 55% to 75% increase in annual earnings per share and headline EPS, boosting its shares 6%.
The company also said in a statement its order book stood at R6.2bn.
Its shares rose as much as 7% after the statement, and gained 2.74% to R15 by 14:49, outpacing a 0.8% firmer Johannesburg All-share index.
South African construction companies have been somewhat cushioned from the global financial crisis thanks to a government infrastructure push and a slew of building projects linked to the 2010 soccer World Cup.
However they have started to report cancelled contracts and slower growth, particularly in the hard-hit mining sector and in the Middle East, where the Gulf building boom is unravelling.
Construction and engineering firm Group Five, for example, said on Wednesday it expected a 50% rise in first-half earnings but that its business in the Middle East was under pressure.
Headline EPS, the main profit gauge in South Africa, strips out certain financial, non-trading and one-off items.
- Reuters