Avid Twitter user and Tesla chief, Elon Musk, took to his account on Sunday to fire off some cheeky tweets aimed at US politician Bernie Sanders after the senator from Vermont demanded that the extremely wealthy pay their fair share in taxes via his Twitter account.
Musk tweeted back: “I keep forgetting that you’re still alive.”
He followed that up with another tweet, “Want me to sell more stock, Bernie? Just say the word…”
And 11 hours later he was still engaged in a war of words.
Musk recently sold nearly $7 billion of his Tesla shares after conducting a Twitter poll where he asked whether he should do so, but it was subsequently revealed that the share sales were pre-planned with more set to take place in the future.
The Tesla share price fell after users told Musk to sell his stocks but remain hugely sought after on the stock market.
Turning to local news, we may well be in for an interest rate hike on the cards this week when the Reserve Bank’s Monetary Policy Committee makes its bi-monthly announcement on Thursday.
The growing consensus among economists and analysts is that the interest rate will be moved up with the only question remaining as to when the decision will be made, reports Daily Maverick.
Finder.com, a global finance platform, said its panel of 20 economists were almost split down the middle with 55% expecting a rate hike and the remainder expecting a hold at the status quo.
Disgruntled ANC staffers will go ahead with planned strike action today following months of non-payment from the governing party despite promises they would be paid. According to a City Press report (Subscribe to read) many staffers have called the current party leadership the “worst” in its history. Staffers want a meeting with the ANC top six to discuss a “written and binding agreement which will see workers being paid what is due to them”.
Here’s a roundup of the world’s top and most interesting headlines:
SA Business
Vodacom ramps up investment in South African network – TechCentral SA
MultiChoice has about R147 million in unclaimed dividends. Find out if you’re owed anything – Business Insider SA
Ramaphosa’s R800 million plan to create 50,000 jobs in South Africa – BusinessTech
Global Business
Australian bank offers customers ability to buy, sell and hold crypto assets – EWN
Trump Organization selling Washington hotel for $375m, reports say – BBC News
Game over for Fortnite in China as developer pulls plug – AFP
Markets
Inflation Is Killing the Dollar Carry Trade in Emerging Markets – Bloomberg (via Daily Maverick)
The Finance Ghost: Gold shining and MTN still smiling on the market front – Daily Maverick
Dollar Down as Investors Await Next Clues on Fed Interest Rate Hike Timeline – Investing.com
Opinion/In-depth
High court battle kicks off to claw back Insure Group Managers’ R1.2bn nest egg – Daily Maverick
Enoch Godongwana: Is South Africa’s finance minister Mr Tough Love or Mr Share-the-Love? – Daily Maverick
SA’s health system is on its knees: the budget offers no relief – Financial Mail
Multimedia
PODCAST | The Story: Eskom crisis likely to get worse before it gets better – News24
Toshiba to split into three after scandals – Reuters Video
AstraZeneca vaccine turns profitable – Reuters Video
