Tag Archives: economy

Johannesburg, South Africa | AFP | South Africa’s powerful trade union federation Cosatu, a key coalition partner of the ruling ANC, on Tuesday called for embattled President Jacob Zuma to resign following a deeply unpopular cabinet reshuffle. Union general secretary Bheki Ntshalintshali said it was time for Zuma to “step …

  Johannesburg, South Africa | AFP | South African President Jacob Zuma’s sweeping cabinet overhaul exposes deep divisions between the ANC’s apartheid-struggle old guard and a new generation often accused of not living up to expectations. Malusi Gigaba, 45, who replaced Pravin Gordhan, 67, as finance minister is a fervent …

Johannesburg, South Africa | AFP | Pravin Gordhan, who was sacked late Thursday, is liked and admired by many ordinary South Africans — an unusual achievement for any finance minister. He held onto the purse strings for longer than many analysts expected after he was parachuted into the job in …

Johannesburg, South Africa | AFP | South African President Jacob Zuma has come under fire from both his own party and the opposition over a cabinet reshuffle in which he fired his internationally respected finance minister. Zuma is no stranger to scandal. Here are five of his biggest career controversies: – …

Johannesburg, South Africa | AFP | The backlash against South African President Jacob Zuma’s shock reshuffle has intensified pressure on him to resign ahead of the 2019 general election. Here are four of his possible successors: – The negotiator – Cyril Ramaphosa, a 64-year-old veteran with strong anti-apartheid struggle credentials, …

Shanghai, China | AFP | State-owned Chinese energy giant PetroChina on Thursday announced it slumped to a record-low profit for 2016 as global oil price weakness slashed earnings by 78 percent. Net profit fell to 7.86 billion yuan ($1.1 billion), the Beijing-based company said in a statement to the Hong Kong …

Johannesburg, South Africa | AFP |South African President Jacob Zuma sacked his finance minister and made ten new cabinet appointments late Thursday in a dramatic reshuffle which could split the ruling ANC party. The African National Congress, which led the fight against apartheid and came to power under Nelson Mandela …

London, United Kingdom | AFP | Lloyd’s of London’s decision to open a European subsidiary was inevitable following the trigger of Brexit, with the only difficult choice being its location, chief executive Inga Beale told AFP Thursday. Lloyd’s, which insures against catastrophes such as earthquakes, shipwrecks and revolutions, announced it …

COMMENT: Trump’s rejection of international trade rules by executive order and renegotiation foreshadow likely trade tensions By Oonagh Fitzgerald and Hector R. Torres Donald Trump’s presidency is posing fundamental challenges to the rule-based international trading system that has buttressed global growth for decades. But while America’s protectionist maneuverings threaten a …

New York, United States | AFP | Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates once again topped the Forbes magazine list of the world’s more than 2,000 billionaires, while US President Donald Trump slipped more than 200 spots, the magazine said Monday. Gates, whose wealth is estimated at $86 billion, led the list …