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Cape Town - A roundup of Thursday's top economic and finance reads on Fin24.
REVEALED: How much staff in former minister Lynne Brown's private office earned
An employee with just a grade 9 qualification earned over R890 000 a year while working for former minister of public enterprises Lynne Brown in her private office.
This was revealed in a written response to a parliamentary question posed by Democratic Alliance MP Gregory Krumbock to the former minister.
Krumbock enquired about the amount budgeted and spent for her private office as well as the remuneration of staff, their job titles and qualifications.
There were four other staff members with senior certificates, but their salaries varied based on job title and salary level.
Majola to MPs: You're so obsessed with Putin, you probably dream about him
Deputy Minister of Energy Thembisile Majola urged opposition party MPs in the National Assembly to resist indulging their “obsession” with the now-shelved nuclear build programme and Russian Federation President Vladimir Putin.
Speculation went into overdrive that government was preparing to pursue nuclear after Energy Minister Jeff Radebe said, ahead of his budget vote on Wednesday, that nuclear energy remained a part of his department’s energy mix plans.
A mystified Majola dismissed the MPs’ concerns by saying government would consult with the public before finalising its IRP, IEP and energy mix policy.
Investec bleeds R220m on Steinhoff exposure
Investec Bank [JSE:INP] lost R220m as a result of credit exposure to Steinhoff, the company said on Thursday, as it released financial results for the year ended March 31.
The company said the trading and investment losses were lower than earlier estimates.
Investec said the credit exposures, through Steinhoff Africa Retail, "represent a small portion [of] the group’s balance sheet".
Current land claims will take 178 years to clear, says researcher
Land reform has progressed so slowly in South Africa that current claims alone would take 178 years to conclude if government were to continue working at the same pace.
This is according to Institute for Poverty, Land and Agrarian Studies (PLAAS) researcher Professor Ruth Hall, who spoke at a land reform debate organised by the University of Stellenbosch business school on Thursday morning. PLAAS is a land rights research institution housed at the University of the Western Cape.
The debate comes at a time when Parliament is preparing to investigate the need to amend the Constitution, with a view to allowing the state the power to expropriate land without compensation.
How the rising petrol price will affect your pocket
Consumers should brace themselves for yet another steep petrol price hike at the end of May, according to the Automobile Association which warned on Tuesday that the petrol price could rise by 74 cents a litre, with diesel going up by 81c/l and paraffin by 78c/l.
This projected fuel price increase follows two successive hikes in April and May, against the backdrop of a raised government fuel levy, a weaker rand and a strengthening international Brent crude oil price.
Fin24 spoke to Ofentse Mokwena, a transport economics lecturer at the University of the North West, about the impact this will have on consumers and motorists.
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