S.Africa's 1time airline to list on local bourse

(Reuters) - South Africa's second largest low-cost airline, 1time, is set to list on Johannesburg's smaller bourse AltX and capitalise on strong growth in air travel, it said on Monday.

1time said it would list on AltX, operated by the Johannesburg Securities Exchange, on Aug 14 and would offer 30 million ordinary shares at an issue price of 100 cents per ordinary share, raising 30 million rand.


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S.African stocks firmer, led by resources and banks

(Reuters) - Heavyweight miners Anglo American and BHP Billiton and bank shares led South Africa's bourse higher on Monday after sliding over 3 percent last Friday, spooked by a global market sell-off.

A Johannesburg-based trader said both Anglo and Billiton were recovering from being oversold last week, along with other resource stocks and banks.


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Datatec unit buys US ReView Video for $25 mln

(Reuters) - South African IT firm Datatec has acquired a U.S. video-conferencing and Voice over Internet distributor for $25 million to help boost its voice technology business, it said on Wednesday.

Datatec Ltd, which is listed in London and Johannesburg, said in a statement its unit Westcon would pay for the acquisition of ReView Video's assets with cash, and said the deal would enhance earnings in this financial year.


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Didata sells Britehouse stake to black investors

(Reuters) - South African technology firm Dimension Data has agreed to sell 60 percent of its Britehouse Group IT consulting and services business to black investors to help it expand in Africa.

Didata, which is listed in London and Johannesburg, said on Thursday it had won approval to sell the stake to a consortium comprising black empowerment groups Convergence Partners Investments and Safika Holdings, and investment firm VenFin.


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Platinum Rises on Speculation Supply May Be Disrupted; Palladium Declines

(Bloomberg) -- Platinum rose to a one-month high in
London on speculation supplies may be disrupted from South
Africa, the biggest producer of the metal. Palladium dropped.

Johannesburg-based Impala Platinum Holdings Ltd.'s pay talks
with a labor union failed after workers refused to accept a two-
year wage pact, Eddie Majadibodu, a negotiator for the National
Union of Mineworkers, said today.


Read more at Bloomberg Commodities News

Mondi Expands and Modernizes Its Russian, Polish Plants for $1.19 Billion

(Bloomberg) -- Mondi Plc, the South African paper
and packaging company spun off by Anglo American Plc, will spend
875 million euros ($1.19 billion) on expanding and modernizing
plants in Russia and Poland over the next two years.

Boosting output and the efficiency of a Russian mill will
require 525 million euros, with the remainder to be spent on
adding a paper machine in Poland, Chief Executive Officer David
Hathorn said in a presentation at the Johannesburg stock market,
where Mondi shares officially began trading today.


Read more at Bloomberg Emerging Markets News

Rand steady, bonds weaken before c/act

(Reuters) - South Africa's rand was softer on Thursday after slipping overnight, and bonds weakened, while the market waited for crucial first quarter domestic current account data later in the morning.

The local currency was trading at 7.1625 against the greenback at 0630 GMT, 0.15 percent weaker than its close in New York of 7.15 and sharply softer than levels in late Johannesburg trade on Wednesday.


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Platinum Futures Hold Near Record in Tokyo as Anglo Shuts Rustenburg Mine

(Bloomberg) -- Platinum futures held near a record
high in Tokyo after Anglo Platinum Ltd., the world's largest
producer, said yesterday it would shut its biggest mine for as
long as seven days.

The disruption may cut output at the mine in Rustenburg,
South Africa, by as much as 15,000 ounces this year, Anglo
Platinum said. The Johannesburg-based company said the closure is
to improve safety after 12 workers were killed at the mine this
year, including five in the past two weeks.


Read more at Bloomberg Commodities News

Platinum Gains as Anglo Platinum Halts Rustenberg Mine; Palladium Advances

(Bloomberg) -- Platinum rose the most in two weeks
after South Africa's Anglo Platinum Ltd., the world's biggest
producer, halted output at its largest mine following the deaths
of five workers in the past two weeks. Palladium also advanced.

The Rustenburg mine will be closed for as long as seven
days, reducing annual production by between 10,000 and 15,000
ounces, Johannesburg-based Anglo Platinum said in a statement
today. Platinum supply fell short of demand in seven of the past
eight years, helping prices to more than triple since 1998.


Read more at Bloomberg Commodities News

Platinum Futures Gain in Asia as African Mine Wage Talks May Push Up Costs

(Bloomberg) -- Platinum futures gained in Tokyo for
a third day in four amid speculation wage negotiations at mines
in South Africa, the world's biggest producer, will lead to
higher costs to make the metal.

Pay talks are in their fourth week since Johannesburg-based
Anglo Platinum Ltd., the world's largest producer, offered a 5
percent raise. Workers have demanded a 15 percent increase.
Three miners drowned last week in a mudslide at Anglo's
Rustenburg platinum mine, and Lesiba Seshoka, a spokesman for
the National Union of Mineworkers, on June 8 said safety issues
would be ``prominent'' in talks with mining companies.


Read more at Bloomberg Commodities News

S.African stocks up on Anglo corporate action

(Reuters) - South African stocks ended the week firmer on Friday with resource stocks leading the bourse into positive territory boosted by news of the listing of Anglo American's paper unit and stronger metals prices.

"It was a strong trading day today with reasonably widespread positives in the market, but resource stocks were still dominating," a Johannesburg-based trader said.


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Investec Agrees to Buy U.K.'s Subprime Bank Kensington for $560 Million

(Bloomberg) -- Investec, a South African private and
investment bank with units in the U.K. and Australia, agreed to buy
Kensington Group Plc for 283 million pounds ($560 million) to
expand its mortgage-backed securities business in Britain.

The offer values each Kensington share at 519.5 pence, a
premium of 6 percent over the London-based bank's closing stock
price yesterday, Johannesburg-based Investec said. Investec offered
0.7 new shares for each Kensington share and a special dividend
from Kensington of 26 pence, based on the value of Investec's
closing stock price of 705 pence yesterday.


Read more at Bloomberg Emerging Markets News

S.African minister calls monorail deal a surprise

(Reuters) - A plan to build a $1.7 billion dollar monorail system around South Africa's business hub was announced without the transport ministry's approval, Transport Minister Jeff Radebe said on Wednesday.

Gauteng province, which includes Johannesburg, last week unveiled the monorail project, which would see a Malaysian-led consortium invest 12 billion rand to build a monorail system between the black township of Soweto and Johannesburg.


Read more at Reuters Africa

Are you paying too much rent?

Rents in Johannesburg increasing the fastest

Tenants worrying about big increases in the rent they pay each month should move to Pretoria.
According to the latest Rode Report, flat rentals in a few of Pretoria's suburbs hardly moved and in some cases, even decreased - great news for tenants but not for property investors.
The report lists flat rentals for standard- and upmarket-quality units, for the third quarter of 2006. The rentals are exclusive of amenities and are for unfurnished units.

Compared to the year before, the average monthly rental paid for an upmarket two-bedroom flat in Pretoria dropped 9%.
On average, it was R100 cheaper per month, to rent a bachelor flat in Pretoria in 2005 than in 2006.

Read more at MoneyWeb.co.za