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Cape Town - ICYMI: A roundup of Wednesday's must-read financial and economic news.
Robust rand races to 9-month high
The rand has breached the R12.40/$-level, firming on continued positive sentiment following Cyril Ramaphosa's election as ANC leader, and as the greenback eased against a basket of currencies.
"The market still believes that the new ANC leadership is going to turn the SA ship around," Wichard Cilliers, currency dealer at TreasuryOne told Fin24.
By 13:15 on Wednesday, the local unit was changing hands 1.17% firmer at R12.35/$.
The last time the rand traded at these levels was in March, just before President Jacob Zuma axed former finance minister Pravin Gordhan and his deputy Mcebisi Jonas in a Cabinet reshuffle. The unit was then trading as low as R12.30 to the dollar.
Christo Wiese's 2017 losses dwarf GDP of 13 Africa countries
Christo Wiese was one of Africa’s richest people. But in 2017, the former chairperson of scandal-hit Steinhoff International [JSE:SNH] lost more wealth than the gross domestic product of at least 13 of the continent’s countries.
The billionaire is the biggest shareholder in the furniture and clothing company, which has plunged more than 90% this month amid accounting irregularities.
Steinhoff's attempts to regain investor and creditor trust have fallen flat. More than two weeks after disclosing accounting irregularities, delaying its results and announcing the departure of its chief executive officer, the South African furniture and clothing retailer remains locked in a downward spiral.
WhatsApp to stop working on some smartphones on New Year's Eve
New Year's Eve will mark the last day that popular instant messenger WhatsApp functions on some smartphones and operating systems.
WhatsApp support for BlackBerry OS, including BlackBerry 10, and Windows Phone 8 will cease on December 31 2017, according to a blogpost published by WhatsApp.
The post was first published in 2016, but was recently updated to spell out when support for certain phones and platforms would end.
In addition to stopping support for BlackBerry OS and Windows Phone 8, support for the Nokia S40 will end after December 31 2018, while WhatsApp support for Android versions 2.3.7 and older is expected to cease after February 1 2020.
Investors want answers as Steinhoff stares into the abyss
Steinhoff International Holdings' [JSE:SNH] attempts to regain investor and creditor trust have fallen flat. More than two weeks after disclosing accounting irregularities, delaying its results and announcing the departure of its chief executive officer, the South African furniture and clothing retailer remains locked in a downward spiral.
A December 19 meeting for lenders failed to halt a bond selloff and a slump in Steinhoff’s Frankfurt- and Johannesburg-listed shares, after management and advisers didn’t address some of the most pressing financial questions about the company, which owns Conforama in France, Mattress Firm in the US and Poundland in the UK.
With auditors PricewaterhouseCoopers still digging into Steinhoff’s accounts, here are some of the mysteries creditors and shareholders want answered.
Breaking Zuma’s kleptocracy is up to all of us
Ongoing revelations have suggested that the South African state under President Jacob Zuma morphed into a kleptocracy, writes Sean Gossel, senior lecturer at UCT Graduate School of Business.
Kleptocracy derives from the Greek words kleptes, meaning "thief", and kratos, meaning "rule". During his disastrous tenure, President Zuma used the common kleptocratic tools of "organised disorganisation" to create an unstable environment for his benefit.
These included using frequent Cabinet shuffles and transfers of officials so as to punish or reward loyalty, and ensuring that the patronage system remains intact while separating and disrupting opposing factions and potential rival challengers.
The impact of this divide-and-rule approach has been catastrophic for state efficiency and delivery.
The 2017 GDP growth forecast is 0.7%, unemployment is at 27.7%, business confidence is at the lowest levels in decades, gross national debt has reached its highest level since 2008, and S&P and Fitch have downgraded our credit rating to "junk status" (Moody’s has kept us at the lowest investment grade until a review after February’s Budget speech).
As the ANC factional stalemate is likely to continue, it is up to South Africa’s private sector, trade unions, civil society, and media to keep up the pressure if the Ramaphosa faction is to succeed in breaking down Zuma’s kleptocracy and underlying clientelist system.
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