Here’s what is happening in and affecting South Africa today:
Unrest: Business Unity South Africa has warned that the country is set to see a repeat of its July 2021 unrest as it continues to face political unrest, high unemployment rates, and rising concern over the failure of law enforcement to bring about any meaningful arrests of the culprits responsible for the original violence. [BusinessDay]
Fare increases: The National Taxi Alliance (NTA) has asked for government intervention to help soften the blow for both commuters and taxi owners in the wake of a series of sharp price hikes. The call for intervention comes after the taxi industry plans to increase fares by between 25% and 30% because of the rising fuel costs. [EWN]
Flight prices: Flight prices between Johannesburg and Cape Town have spiked to as high as R6,000 for a return ticket following the collapse of Comair, which accounted for as much as 40% of supply in the market. Along with the supply crunch, where the number of seats on routes is down by approximately 9,000 a week, business travel also seems to have rebounded somewhat, with fewer seats available to go around. [Moneyweb]
Impeachment: Parliament will begin its first-ever impeachment inquiry this week into suspended public protector Busisiwe Mkhwebane. While the public protector’s office has pulled the plug on all of Mkhwebane’s legal challenges related to this inquiry, it will still be funding her legal defence. [eNCA]
Markets: The rand weakened to 20-month lows last week as the local currency’s resilience is being tested by fears of a US recession. Lower oil prices help curb inflation, but they’re also a drain on dollar liquidity globally, boosting the greenback and weighing on emerging-market currencies as financial conditions tighten and funding costs rise. The rand is currently trading at R16.96/$, R17.21/€ and R20.33/£. The price of Brent crude oil today is $106.5/barrel. [Bloomberg]
