In an increasingly unequal world where just two men are worth R7.4 trillion and another is resorting to auctioning off buffaloes and luxury cars to save his country’s economy, it’s no wonder that some people are losing their marbles. In “revelations” only bad movies are made of, Independent Media chair Iqbal Survé and his entourage revived the Tembisa 10 with a bizarre twist. One that includes as head honcho a Nigerian doctor and where state hospitals (and the department of home affairs) are the epicentre of human and baby trafficking. And there’s a promise of a sequel that will play off in court. Who needs Netflix to binge-watch a series?
And while that’s happening, back in reality the clock is ticking on climate change as world leaders get ready for yet another summit of pledges to turn off the heat on Earth. And no one is brave enough to take the lead, according to climate activist Greta Thunberg. But there’s always hope and each one of us can do our bit. Like the 37-year-old farmer Danie Bester from Gauteng who made a radical decision to park his tillers and overhaul the way he farms, using techniques that are both better for his soil and for adapting to climate change. Or the women in India who have taken to farming seaweed, which is being hailed by scientists as a miracle crop that absorbs more carbon dioxide than trees.
In the markets, the rand led emerging market currencies weaker yesterday as it closed 1.7% weaker at R15.08 in what looked like good month-end importer demand for dollars, coupled with a general risk-off mood, writes TreasuryONE in its morning note to clients. “The implementation of Stage 4 load shedding also didn’t help local sentiment.” This morning, the local unit opened a touch softer at R15.09 and is now the worst-performing EM currency, according to the forex trading house.
Rand peers were mixed, with the Brazilian real firming slightly after the central bank raised rates by 1.5%, while the Mexican peso and Russian ruble suffered significant losses. The rand, last trading at R15.07/$, will now be looking at US weekly jobless claims data, the outcome of the ECB monetary policy meeting and local PPI data, all out later today, for direction.
On the commodities front, gold is back above $1,800 this morning, while palladium is still trading below the $2,000/oz-mark at $1,982 and platinum is flat at $1,021. Brent slipped further this morning and was last trading for $82.95 a barrel.
Here’s a roundup of the world’s top and most interesting headlines:
SA Business
South Africa eyes future as green hydrogen hub – African Business
R20 a litre for petrol and rising food prices – bleak outlook for Christmas in South Africa – BusinessTech
Hawks investigating ‘Malema-linked’ fuel tender – News24
Global Business
Impact of Brexit on economy ‘worse than Covid’ – BBC News
New Zealand eases quarantine but won’t welcome tourists yet – Times of India
United States issues its 1st passport with ‘X’ gender marker – Euronews
Markets
Asian markets drop as inflation, recovery return to focus – AFP
Bitcoin slips below $60,000 as ETF-related bliss evaporates – Bloomberg
Twitter drops the most since April on sales outlook – Bloomberg
Technology
Three awesome Earth photos captured from space this week – Digital Trends
Samsung tops profit estimates after chip crunch lifts prices – Bloomberg
Facebook orders staff to preserve communications as legal threats loom – The Independent
Opinion/In-depth
Hope or hopelessness? The factors influencing South Africa’s political near future – Daily Maverick
Africa’s first COVID-19 vaccine plants: what the deal does, and doesn’t, cover – The Conversation
Stalingrad defence: Zuma’s costly and legally untenable attempts to avoid facing criminal charges – Daily Maverick
Video
Some facts on climate change – Deutsche Welle
Moderna to supply Africa with up to 110 million COVID doses – Newsy
NASA and SpaceX count down to Halloween launch – AP
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