Financial Mail articles from August 2009

Financial Mail archives from August 2009

EATING OUT GAUTENG. Poised for profit.
August 28, 2009... Byline: Linda Stafford EATING OUT GAUTENG Poised for profit MONARCH HOTEL. Address: Old Post Office Building, 167 Oxford Road, Rosebank, Johannesburg Tel: (011) 341-2000 Until now, boutique hotel Monarch, a decorative gem cleverly and...

DID YOU HEAR?
August 28, 2009... Three nuns are attending a rugby final match. Two men are sitting behind them. Because the nuns' habits are partially blocking their view, the men decide to badger the nuns, hoping to annoy them enough to move to another area. In a very loud...

NHI spells emigrate.
August 28, 2009... Byline: NAZMEERA MOOLA NHI spells emigrate Many SA government policies since 1994 have had unintended consequences. The Mining Rights Bill resulted in a contraction in SA mining output during the biggest commodity bull market since World War...

The fact of the matter.
August 28, 2009... The fact of the matter Education is what remains after you have forgotten everything you learnt in school. This somewhat ironic view has been expressed in various forms and attributed to various authors, including Mark Twain and Albert Einstein....

Remove the domestic hurdles.
August 28, 2009... Remove the domestic hurdles SA's growth rate remains closely linked to the international economy. It was the global downturn that pushed SA into recession, and the recovery in global demand will be the main engine for pulling us out of it. We...

Wounded nation.
August 28, 2009... Byline: Barney Mthombothi Wounded nation Caster Semenya, the 18-year-old at the centre of an international storm over gender, was welcomed home this week more as a victim than a victor. The people who battled morning rush-hour traffic to see...

Telecoms' challenge.
August 28, 2009... Byline: DOMINIC CULL Telecoms' challenge SA's telecommunication industry has taken great strides forward with the recent issuing of electronic communications network service (ECNS) and electronic communications service (ECS) licences to the...

Another Week.
August 28, 2009... Another Week AT HOME SA's key business cycle indicator, compiled by the Reserve Bank, rose 1,8% in June, its biggest monthly rise in 5l years and the third rise in a row, suggesting an end to recession by year-end. Employment equity commission's...

A sexual watchdog.
August 28, 2009... A sexual watchdog Watchdogs demand more (Features August 7) is a complete misnomer. I lodged a complaint with the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) regarding a certain billboard for the stripper industry which had been placed in an area that...

Single body works best.
August 28, 2009... Byline: Leon Campher Single body works best In our view the consumer does not benefit from different associations representing segments of the same industry competing in the media for maximum coverage of the product wrappers they represent I...

Crisis watch.
August 28, 2009... Byline: Larry Claasen Crisis watch If the recession shows little sign of ending, don't be surprised if the country's banks start getting lectures from politicians. If it were not for the banks' onerous lending criteria, the economy would have...

BRIMSTONE - EQUITY INVESTMENT INSTRUMENT.
August 28, 2009... Byline: Larry Claasen BRIMSTONE EQUITY INVESTMENT INSTRUMENT Price: R5,85 6m Jun T/O (Rm) EBT (Rm) EPS (c) DPS (c) Mkt cap: R263,9m 2009 213,3 37,9 5,4 PE: 53,67 2008 114,5 (79,5) (42,1) Sector: 17,84 t s +86% The results look good but...

Patently prohibitive.
August 28, 2009... Byline: Duncan McLeod Patently prohibitive A US district court ruled recently that Microsoft had two months to pull its Word software from store shelves for violating a patent held by another software company. The judgment has led to people...

INVESTING: WHAT TO EXPECT IN THE RECOVERY. Bumpy road back.
August 28, 2009... Byline: Andrew McNulty INVESTING: WHAT TO EXPECT IN THE RECOVERY Bumpy road back The recession is near an end. What are the ingredients for a recovery? WHAT IT MEANS: Confidence is improving. Earnings have yet to recover. Global investor...

FINANCIAL SERVICES. Pariah to performer.
August 28, 2009... Byline: Andrew McNulty FINANCIAL SERVICES Pariah to performer It may seem difficult to believe, but the financial sector has already moved from being a pariah sector to one that has strongly outperformed the market over the past year. That...

TRACKING THE ECONOMIC RECOVERY. On a path of discovery.
August 28, 2009... Byline: Claire Bisseker TRACKING THE ECONOMIC RECOVERY On a path of discovery Good news abounds from all over the world. But is the global recession really behind us? Will SA's recovery be as quick or will we be stuck in lag mode? WHAT IT...

MANUFACTURING. Dark days indeed.
August 28, 2009... Byline: Larry Claasen MANUFACTURING Dark days indeed Manufacturers expected 2009 to be a bad year. So far it has lived up to the worst of their predictions. There has been no respite from the downturn. Domestic sales have been knocked by a...

MINING. Cautious optimism.
August 28, 2009... Byline: Matthew Hill MINING Cautious optimism It's a bit like climbing out of a half-frozen lake. The shuddering mining sector has made it to the bank as it grabs at higher commodity prices, but executives remain wary. Cautious optimism is...

MOTOR INDUSTRY. Tunnel vision.
August 28, 2009... Byline: David Furlonger MOTOR INDUSTRY Tunnel vision Former Anglo American deputy chairman Les Boyd, asked during a previous recession whether he could see light at the end of the economic tunnel, responded in typically direct fashion: I...

PROPERTY. Outperforming the world.
August 28, 2009... Byline: Ian Fife PROPERTY Outperforming the world The global collapse of property prices has passed us by. There have been small falls in prices of houses and secondary commercial property, but SA property's staying power is no longer in...

RETAIL. Don't rely on shoppers.
August 28, 2009... Byline: Sasha Planting RETAIL Don't rely on shoppers When SA hit its peak of 6,6% annual GDP growth in the fourth quarter of 2006, consumer spending was at full throttle. Retail growth between 2005 and 2006 averaged 10% on a constant basis....

ECONOMIC RECOVERY: STATE OF RESCUE PACKAGES. 'Band aid measure'.
August 28, 2009... Byline: Carol Paton and Thebe Mabanga ECONOMIC RECOVERY: STATE OF RESCUE PACKAGES 'Band aid measure' It may be too late for the 267 000 people who lost their jobs in the second quarter of this year, but government's response illustrates the...

TOURISM. Numbers on the wane.
August 28, 2009... Byline: Razina Munshi TOURISM Numbers on the wane Though touted as SA's new gold just a few years ago, tourism has not grown as expected in the run-up to the 2010 soccer World Cup. Tourism's overall contribution to the economy was expected...

Diamond: Transpaco; Dog: BRC DiamondCore.
August 28, 2009... Byline: Jamie Carr DIAMONDS & DOGS 's picks of the week Diamond Transpaco Transpaco has been around a long time, and while it would be fair to say that it hasn't consistently shot the lights out over its lengthy history, it has definitely...

YOU COULD WIN.
August 28, 2009... YOU COULD WIN by sending news snippets, wit and gossip to Did You Hear? Published entries win R200. Please include your name, address and telephone number or you will not be eligible. Send entries to: fmdidu@fm.co.za. * BDFM employees are not...

ECONOMIC INDICATORS.
August 28, 2009... -25 percent y/y The real value of building plans passed during June fell from -6,3% in May. The dip is driven by the residential sector, and paints a gloomy picture for the building & construction industry in the third quarter of 2009. ...

Liquidations.
August 28, 2009... Byline: Razina Munshi Liquidations Business failures rose 33,8% in July, following a 33,5% increase in June, highlighting the strain the recession has placed on companies, particularly those in the small business sector. Liquidations are a...

HOUSING. Code being updated.
August 28, 2009... Byline: Thebe Mabanga HOUSING Code being updated Five years after a critical change in housing delivery policy, government is still fiddling with detail while the hope of eradicating the 2,2m backlog has quietly been all but abandoned. In...

RADIO. Furore over frequencies.
August 28, 2009... Byline: Matebello Motloung RADIO Furore over frequencies Tension is brewing between the Independent Communications Authority of SA (Icasa) and media owners. This follows the discovery by media companies, through their technical research, that...

AOPPOSITION POLITICS. Value of an alliance.
August 28, 2009... Byline: Prakash Naidoo OPPOSITION POLITICS Value of an alliance A month after exploratory talks with an eye to a new political movement, leaders of parliament's smaller parties remain optimistic that the 2011 municipal elections will herald a...

CORRUPTION Dim view of moonlighting.
August 28, 2009... Byline: Prakash Naidoo CORRUPTION Dim view of moonlighting Though there is near unanimous support for the proposal to ban public servants from moonlighting for companies that do business with government, it is possible that the enabling...

UNIVERSITY TESTS. Blueprint for a benchmark.
August 28, 2009... Byline: Carol Paton UNIVERSITY TESTS Blueprint for a benchmark From 2010, first-year university students at most institutions and in most faculties will write the National Benchmarking Test (NBT) to measure competence in the key cognitive...

PUBLIC PROPERTY. DA mega makeover.
August 28, 2009... Byline: Ian Fife PUBLIC PROPERTY DA mega makeover Western Cape public works MEC Robin Carlisle is about to launch a radical project to start developing each of the hundreds of properties owned by the province. The aim is to provide a huge...

The Western Cape's mega property policy.
August 28, 2009... Byline: Ian Fife The Western Cape's mega property policy The combined properties of the provincial government in the Cape Town CBD offer an opportunity for extensively enriching infrastructure and transforming the city. These properties,...

Inappropriate birthday.
August 28, 2009... Byline: Martin Struthmann Inappropriate birthday Very appropriately the FM placed a picture of people holding the old SA flag above David Allen's letter to the editor A little-known birth date? (Letters August 14). This is the FM's own...

ART INVESTMENT. Short SAB, long Stern.
August 28, 2009... Byline: Ian Fife and Gabrielle de St Clair ART INVESTMENT Short SAB, long Stern When Sea Point delicatessen owner Leslie Milner brought home a GBP45 Irma Stern painting, Still life with Tiger Lilies and Melon, in 1952, his wife Dot was...

GIMME. Rugged and sporty.
August 28, 2009... Byline: Duncan McLeod GIMME Rugged and sporty It's not often I get to abuse the gadgets I review. But I really treated Samsung's new B2100 cellphone abysmally, throwing it against walls, bouncing it along the floor, even pouring water over...

EDUCATION. Out for the count.
August 28, 2009... Byline: Carol Paton EDUCATION Out for the count There is a widening gap in the standards of school and tertiary level WHAT IT MEANS: Many students need extra support. Maths curriculum not properly taught Minister of basic education Angie...

101.
August 28, 2009... Byline: Carol Paton What's the problem with US health care? Only the aged and disabled, and pregnant women and children who are very poor, get free health care through federal programmes Medicare and Medicaid. To guarantee decent treatment...

SPORT & GENDER. Insensitivity syndrome.
August 28, 2009... Byline: Jacqui Pile SPORT & GENDER Insensitivity syndrome It will take five specialists to determine whether 18-year-old Caster Semenya, SA's 800m gold medallist, is female enough to compete in athletics. No longer as simple as sizing...

NUCLEAR POWER STATION Funding crunch.
August 28, 2009... Byline: Thebe Mabanga NUCLEAR POWER STATION Funding crunch WHAT IT MEANS: PBMR funding confirmed to next March. Technical case not as solid as economic case Public enterprises minister Barbara Hogan has drawn attention to a possible...

Import tariffs in numbers.
August 28, 2009... Byline: Razina Munshi Tariff lines in numbers 1 200 tariff lines are in the process of being reviewed by the International Trade Administration Commission (Itac), an SA body, in accordance with state policy. 130 tariff lines on machinery are...

WHERE ARE THEY NOW? Back for seconds.
August 28, 2009... Byline: Sasha Planting WHERE ARE THEY NOW? Back for seconds Basil O'Hagan knows what it is like to fly high and fall hard. He was the founder and CEO of the chain of Irish pubs-cum-restaurants, O'Hagan's, which numbered around 61 in its...

Ripe for the picking.
August 28, 2009... Byline: Sasha Planting Ripe for the picking Private security companies have spotted a new business opportunity in Yemen. They supply teams of armoured personnel to the yachts and cargo vessels wanting to make the trip from the Indian Ocean...

THE PLACE TO BE OR NOT TO BE. Dining eyrie.
August 28, 2009... Byline: Amarnath Singh FMGN3copydesk THE PLACE TO BE OR NOT TO BE Dining eyrie ROMA REVOLVING RESTAURANT. Where: 32nd Floor, John Ross House, Durban. Mood: Dizzying It's one of 37 revolving restaurants in the world, and its menu has...

PROFILE. Land Bank's rescue.
August 28, 2009... Byline: Thebe Mabanga PROFILE Land Bank's rescue Land Bank CEO Phakamani Hadebe sees his work of turning the beleaguered state agricultural lender around as a small contribution to a bigger cause. SA needs a viable Land Bank, he says in...

QUESTIONS & ANSWERS. Provinces at risk.
August 28, 2009... Byline: Prakash Naidoo QUESTIONS & ANSWERS Provinces at risk With a government review on the future of provinces under way, spoke to Democratic Alliance leader and Western Cape premier Helen Zille about the issue Is there really a threat...

REAL PEOPLE DOING UNREAL THINGS. Serious business of laughter.
August 28, 2009... Byline: Jacqui Pile REAL PEOPLE DOING UNREAL THINGS Serious business of laughter Shareen Richter Laughter coach THE UNREALITYCHECK Runs a laughter coaching business for companies .and individuals Studied the art of laughing in India. ...

FOOD FOR THOUGHT. Wine, cuisine & song.
August 28, 2009... Byline: Justice Malala FOOD FOR THOUGHT. Wine, cuisine & song JUSTICE MALALA ****Reuben's Restaurant & Bar. 3 Berg Street, Franschhoek. Tel: (021) 876-3136 *****Caster Semenya ****Excellent ***Good **Poor *Mugabe The oohs and ahhs...

MOTORING. Gone with the wind.
August 28, 2009... Byline: David Furlonger MOTORING Gone with the wind WHAT IT COSTS: Scirocco 2.0 TSI DSG: R336 500; Golf 2.0 TDI Highline: R298 900 The confused looks of other road-users, as they checked the identity of the sporty-looking car, were a pleasure...

AT DINNER WITH THE FM. Beating the bear.
August 28, 2009... Byline: Shoks Mzolo AT DINNER WITH THE FM Beating the bear with Afena Capital CEO Tebogo Naledi at Nino's in Rosebank, Johannesburg HOW HE CHILLS: Enjoys spending time with his family, travelling and football After several misses, Tebogo...

TRAVEL. The glister is off the glitz.
August 28, 2009... Byline: Linda Stafford TRAVEL The glister is off the glitz Dubai is more like a remarkable idea than a real place. That's what makes it a do-it-once, at least, destination, writes Dubai is being dissed, big time. Especially by viperous...

BHP BILLITON Tipping the scales.
August 28, 2009... Byline: Julie Bain BHP BILLITON Tipping the scales Marius Kloppers has headed BHP Billiton, the world's largest mining company, for almost three years, and to date he has not blotted his copybook; quite the contrary. I think Marius has...

DRDGOLD. GOLD MINING - SELL.
August 28, 2009... Byline: Matthew Hill DRDGOLD GOLD MINING Price: R5,75 Yr Jun T/O (Rbn) EBT (Rm) EPS (c) DPS (c) Mkt cap: R2,2bn 2009 1,9 82,3 34,3 5 PE: 17 2008 1,8 86,1 264,9 10 Sector: 25,36 t s +5% -5% -87% -50% When the rand gold price leaps like it did...

EXXARO RESOURCES. Power for the long haul.
August 28, 2009... Byline: Matthew Hill EXXARO RESOURCES Power for the long haul Diversified miner Exxaro's results presentations usually seem like a family gathering. There's invariably the banter between CEO Sipho Nkosi and former executives like Con...

GOLD. Inflation hedge.
August 28, 2009... GOLD Inflation hedge The gold price traded comfortably above the US$950/oz level at the start of this week, as the weaker dollar and higher oil price boosted the metal's appeal as an alternative asset and inflation hedge. The dollar has fallen...

OIL. Oil holds strong.
August 28, 2009... OIL Oil holds strong The price of Brent crude hovered below US$75/bbl at the start of this week as optimism over the global economic outlook, a weaker dollar and positive data from the US supported prices. Moreover, data released by the US...

GRINDROD. Eye on the horizon.
August 28, 2009... Byline: Razina Munshi GRINDROD Eye on the horizon Despite a slump in global shipping rates, SA shipping group Grindrod is eyeing new opportunities in the industry, CEO Alan Olivier says. Economic conditions, which have caused Grindrod's...

JSE. Gold breakout?
August 28, 2009... Byline: Garth Mackenzie JSE Gold breakout? The JSE gold index experienced a huge run up to March this year, and the JSE's gold index doubled in value between September 2008 and that month, when equity markets bottomed. But since then gold...

MTN. Investors want more.
August 28, 2009... Byline: Duncan McLeod MTN Investors want more Indian cellphone operator Bharti Airtel is likely to come under renewed pressure to revise upward its proposed offer for a stake in MTN after the release of the Jo'burg-based pan-African and...

BUSINESS CONNEXION GROUP - COMPUTER SERVICES. HOLD.
August 28, 2009... Byline: Sasha Planting BUSINESS CONNEXION GROUP COMPUTER SERVICES Price: R4,25 Yr May T/O (Rbn) EBT (Rm) EPS (c) DPS (c) Mkt cap: R1,1bn 2009 4,4 159,3 26,9 15* PE: 16,04 2008 4,1 212,9 45,1 18 Sector: 10,43 t s +8% -25% -40% -16% *Excludes...

SHOPRITE - RETAIL. HOLD.
August 28, 2009... Byline: Sasha Planting SHOPRITE RETAIL Price: R58,42 Yr Jun T/O (Rbn) EBT (Rbn) EPS (c) DPS (c) Mkt cap: R31,7bn 2009 59,3 3,0 396,5 200 PE: 16,49 2008 47,6 2,4 309,5 155 Sector: 15,85 t s +24,5% +22,6% +28% +29% Good all-round growth. In...

TRANSPACO - CONTAINERS & PACKAGING. HOLD.
August 28, 2009... Byline: Razina Munshi TRANSPACO CONTAINERS & PACKAGING Price: R7,95 Yr Jun T/O (Rm) EBT (Rm) EPS (c) DPS (c) Mkt cap: R261m 2009 803 66,8 167,6 48 PE: 5,32 2008 720 37,2 92,9 28 Sector: 12,47 t s +11,5% +79,7% +80% +71,4% Investments and...

BEER. Scramble for Africa.
August 28, 2009... Byline: Sasha Planting BEER Scramble for Africa In 1996, in a presentation to SA shareholders, SAB chairman Meyer Kahn put up just one slide and spoke on it for more than an hour. The slide showed a map of Africa. The thrust of his message:...

SEPHAKU. Waiting for the upside.
August 28, 2009... Byline: Matthew Hill SEPHAKU Waiting for the upside In ancient Japan, to protect their honour, sometimes samurai warriors would perform a ritual suicide called seppuku. The word bears a striking resemblance to Sephaku Holdings, the JSE's...

RETAIL. Real test is next year.
August 28, 2009... Byline: Sasha Planting RETAIL Real test is next year While national retail sales continue to decline year-on-year, SA's most consistent retailer, Truworths, has delivered another solid performance, growing turnover by 11% and after-tax profit...

Unions are out of touch.
August 28, 2009... Byline: Guenter F Blank Unions are out of touch I read the article Jobs or higher pay with interest (Economic Viewpoint August 14). I am the MD of the SA operations of a German company. Every day I fight to keep the jobs of our people...

NEW LISTINGS.
August 28, 2009... NEW LISTINGS Company Arranger Board Listing MAS Plc PSG Capital AltX Aug 31

Investor's Notebook.
August 28, 2009... Byline: Stephen Cranston Investor's Notebook It must be an interesting exercise finding a name for a fund management company. It is easiest to go for the name of the founders, such as Allan Gray and Foord & Meintjes. Some simply inherit...

Road robbers.
August 28, 2009... Byline: Cliff Buchler Road robbers It's clear what the taxi industry has in mind: total control of all transport on our roads. Since inception it has done what it likes, when it likes. The behaviour of taxi drivers is symptomatic of this...

UBUBELE. Growing its niche.
August 28, 2009... Byline: Larry Claasen UBUBELE Growing its niche Taking over troubled ice-cream maker Milkworx is not as crazy as it sounds for agriculture group Ububele. It fits in nicely with Ububele's niche food businesses. Milkworx was the second company...

Close redundant ministries.
August 28, 2009... Byline: Dion George Close redundant ministries While incompetence at local government level is a threat to service delivery under a Jacob Zuma administration, there exists another equally problematic impediment: a top-heavy bureaucracy. The...

Possibilities.
August 28, 2009... Byline: Larry Claasen Possibilities As the industry opens up, IS takes advantage with a VoIP offering WHAT IT MEANS: Already has 600 hotspots around SA. Prepared to build more for corporate offices The mobile network operators are on notice....

MANAGED CARE. Going a step further.
August 28, 2009... Byline: Shoks Mzolo MANAGED CARE Going a step further Managed-care appears to be the least understood concept in SA's R70bn private health-care funding industry. Two years ago, a delegate at the Board of Healthcare Funders gathering decried...

PROSPECTS. Visible and thriving.
August 28, 2009... Byline: Shoks Mzolo PROSPECTS Visible and thriving A mere mention of the name Sechaba Medical Solutions almost always transports CEO Thokozani Magwaza into another world. During our interview at Sechaba's headquarters in the Jo'burg CBD,...

Blooming.
August 28, 2009... Byline: Shoks Mzolo Blooming Defying the odds, this scheme continues its quest for excellence WHAT IT MEANS: The fund is black-owned and debt-free. Ranks among the best for IT and service excellence The need for health-care facilities in SA...

OPERATIONS. More focused service.
August 28, 2009... Byline: Shoks Mzolo OPERATIONS More focused service Moerane Maimane has spent the past few months putting together what should renew the service offering at Sechaba. Two years ago, Sechaba embarked on a rationalisation programme. In 2006,...

A helping hand.
August 28, 2009... Byline: Judy Gilmour A helping hand Alexander Forbes corporate social investment is conducted through its Community Trust, with its five focus areas being the aged, disabled, HIV/Aids, education and women. Group transformation manager Don Ray...

ENTERPRISE DEVELOPMENT. In the heart of things.
August 28, 2009... Byline: Judy Gilmour ENTERPRISE DEVELOPMENT In the heart of things The Adopt a Panel Shop initiative began when Gari Dombo, head of motor & household insurance at Alexander Forbes Risk & Insurance Services, was approached by the...

The Wealth Generation Company is an enterprise development initiative of Alexander Forbes Financial Services. A fully black-owned company, it provides financial and related training and addresses SA.
August 28, 2009... Byline: Judy Gilmour A worthy service The Wealth Generation Company is an enterprise development initiative of Alexander Forbes Financial Services. A fully black-owned company, it provides financial and related training and addresses SA's...

EMPLOYMENT EQUITY. Aiming beyond the pass mark.
August 28, 2009... Byline: Judy Gilmour EMPLOYMENT EQUITY Aiming beyond the pass mark Employment equity is where we now need to make a concerted effort, says Alexander Forbes Group transformation manager Don Ray Malabie. Though our ratings are all at a very...

Reformed.
August 28, 2009... Byline: Judy Gilmour Reformed The group continues to surpass its own expectations WHAT IT MEANS: Has a level 3 BBBEE rating in all local units. Now the group is aiming for a level 2 Transformation comes from commitment and effective...

Other credentials.
August 28, 2009... Byline: Judy Gilmour Other credentials At an ownership level, Alexander Forbes SA is effectively owned 10,75% by Cyril Ramaphosa's Shanduka, 6,05% by a no-cost staff scheme, 2,48% by a subsidised investment management share scheme, and 3,36%...

Procurement redefined.
August 28, 2009... Byline: Judy Gilmour Procurement redefined The BBBEE rating of Alexander Forbes multimanager subsidiary Investment Solutions (IS), is now at a level 3. This is a quantum leap from where we were a few years ago, with a rating of only 8 in...