1995: Amazon.com sells its first book, Fluid Concepts and Creative Analogies: Computer Models of the Fundamental Mechanisms of Thought by Douglas Hofstadter.

On a less cerebral note, it's Global Hug Your Kids Day that is  observed on the third Monday in July.

ADVANCED MANUFACTURING AWARDS UP FOR GRABS

The National Advanced Manufacturing Innovation Awards will be staged for the first time in November. Hosted under the auspices of the dti and the national Composites Cluster, the awards are open to companies active in the advanced manufacturing field, including 3D printing, robotics, automation, AI, laser cutting and etching, CNC machining, software, big data, IOT and composites. Six categories are being contested: scholarly impact in advanced manufacturing; industry advancement in advanced manufacturing; export proficiency; contribution to import replacement; composites innovation; and most promising “start-up” or newcomer. Entries close on July 27 and winners will be announced during the African Advanced Manufacturing and Composites Show in Port Elizabeth from November 7-9. For more information, see www.africanadvancedmanufacturingshow.co.za.

NO QUICK SOLUTIONS TO RISING FUEL PRICES, VAT

President Cyril Ramaphosa has given ministers in the economic cluster a two-week deadline to come up with measures to ease the burden of high fuel prices and the VAT hike on already struggling consumers.  However he was careful not to raise hopes of a quick solution, indicating that government’s options are limited. “We know this matter is urgent and I wanted it to be attended to as quickly as possible… without raising anybody’s hope I am saying there will be an interim report that they will give me,” Ramaphosa said. “Economic cluster ministers will look at all options including the basket of products our people buy most, to see the extent with which we can extend non-vatable products. We obviously cannot tamper much in the end where it impacts on the budget and tax legislation that is out there," he said. (Fin24)

TRUMP’S TARIFFS CAST PALL OVER AGOA TRADE DEAL

South African meat producers could consider litigation against the US if it imposes new tariffs on aluminium-based exports such as vehicles, trade and industry minister Rob Davies said. Amid a threat of a global trade war, the US and its African counterparts are discussing the African Growth and Opportunity Act (Agoa), a preferential-trade programme that enhances market access to the US for about 40 sub-Saharan nations by eliminating import levies on more than 7 000 products ranging from textiles to manufactured items. SA’s government is concerned that the US is considering a new wave of tariffs that could be extended to the vehicle industry, which is one of the cornerstones of South African manufacturing. In June, the Trump administration imposed a 25% duty on steel and 10% levy on aluminium from the EU, Canada and Mexico, after refusing their calls for permanent exemptions. The US says the tariffs are needed to protect its industry and national security. The US government was performing the annual review of the Agoa programme, which had seven years before it expired. It was not clear what would replace it if that were not reviewed, Davies said. (Bloomberg)

WE DID NOTHING WRONG, CLAIM VBS BANK DEPOSITORS

Some mayors and senior officials in the 14 municipalities that made ZAR1.5 billion in deposits to the controversial VBS Bank remain defiant in the face of criticism — even producing legal opinions to defend their decisions. This was revealed by co-operative governance and traditional affairs minister Zweli Mkhize who said the mayors and officials insisted in a meeting in June that they had followed the law. Mkhize said other officials argued that they had misinterpreted legislation that dictates that municipalities may only make deposits with fully commercial financial institutions. (BDLive)

RAMAPHOSA LANDS SECOND INVESTMENT TRANCHE

The United Arab Emirates intends to invest as much as US$10 billion (about ZAR133 billion) in South Africa’s economy, with a focus on tourism and mining. The commitment was made during the first state visit by president Cyril Ramaphosa to the Middle Eastern nation and follows a pledge by Saudi Arabia earlier this week during when the South African president’s visit. Ramaphosa is seeking to revive a flagging economy after taking over from Jacob Zuma as the nation’s leader in February and seeks to lure US$100 billion in investment over the next five years. Business and investor confidence has slumped after an initial boost following Zuma’s departure as ruling-party leader in December. (Bloomberg)

SASOL TO PULL PLUG ON SYNTHETIC FUELS

The recent completion of Sasol’s nine-year, ZAR14 billion mine replacement programme will provide the company’s Secunda synthetic fuels plant with feedstock until 2050. It, however, also marks the end of an era. The Secunda plant uses coal-to-liquids (CTL) conversion technology and is the world’s largest by many orders of magnitude. Despite being highly profitable, the plant will be the last that Sasol will ever run. Sasol Mining is SA’s third largest coal producer, producing 40 million tonnes of coal annually. Apart from its chemical products, the CTL plant produces, on average, 60 million barrels of liquid fuel for Sasol to sell into the South African market each year. But an “extremely large carbon footprint” coupled with uncompetitive technology and slower oil demand are among the reasons behind Sasol’s decision. (Fin24)

OCEANA OPTS FOR WATER DESALINATION

Oceana, Africa’s largest fishing company, has moved to establish water security through desalination plants at two of its factories on the West Coast. Desalination is a controversial technology, with the costs of establishing and operating plant often cited as prohibitive. However, the technology gained attention following the recent drought in the Western Cape. Oceana’s acting CEO, Imraan Soomra, said that at ZAR35 million the capital expenditure to ensure the provision of up to 1.4 million litres of potable water daily was negligible when measured against the real risk of another prolonged drought in the Western Cape. Since June 2017, Oceana had reduced water consumption by 30%-40% at its factories by switching from potable water to seawater wherever possible and reusing waste heat condensate for cleaning. (BDLive)

MEERKAT CASTS ITS EYES HEAVENWARDS

It has been a decade in the making‚ and now the MeerKAT radio telescope has been unveiled. This is a major leap forward, not just for SA but for global astronomy and our understanding of the beginnings of the universe. MeerKAT was unveiled about 70 km from the tiny town of Carnarvon and in the vast big-sky landscape of the Northern Cape, where any interference with the signals is minimal. The MeerKAT is the world’s largest radio telescope and is a precursor to the Square Kilometre Array (SKA)‚ which falls under the department of science and technology. Later it will later be integrated into the SKA‚ which will be 50-100 times more sensitive than any other radio telescope on Earth. (BDLive)

WOOLIES PUTS ITS MONEY WHERE ITS MOUTH IS

Food and clothing retailer Woolworths has committed ZAR4 million over the next three years to improve nutrition for children in 50 under-resourced schools in Gauteng, through a partnership with the UN Children’s Fund (Unicef). The pilot programme will also include a partnership with the department of basic education, to benefit about 50 000 pupils in selected disadvantaged primary schools that participate in the National School Nutrition Programme (NSNP). Woolworths also supports other food security programmes, including its long-term sponsorship of Food & Trees for Africa’s EduPlant National food gardening and greening programme, the ongoing Woolworths stores’ initiatives to make surplus food readily available to local charities on a daily basis and its recent partnership with FoodForward SA. (BDLive)

PATENT HOLDER CALLING SHOTS ON TB MEDICATION

A breakthrough tuberculosis pill is being sold at about 10 times the price it should be by patent holder Johnson & Johnson (J&J), according to public interest law centre Section27. The new drug, bedaquiline, is an important advance in the treatment of multidrug resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB). It is a pill that replaces painful injections whose side effects included hearing loss. J&J’s subsidiary, Janssen Pharmaceuticals, has set the price of bedaquiline in SA at US$136 (about ZAR1 800) per month. Research conducted at the University of Liverpool found this price "excessively rewards" Janssen, which could profitably sell bedaquiline at a tenth of what it is charging. (BDLive)

DRUG MAKER CALLS IT QUITS ON ANTIBIOTICS RESEARCH

The fight against life-threatening infections suffered another blow when one of the world’s biggest drug makers waved the white flag. Novartis is ending antibacterial and antiviral research to "prioritise resources", the company said. That comes after GlaxoSmithKline (Glaxo) put some antibiotics assets under review, Medicines sold its business and Sanofi shifted its portfolio to Evotec. Allergan said in May that it would leave the field and AstraZeneca, once a leader, washed its hands of antibiotics two years ago. The pullback revives concern about a world in which routine infections again become lethal as bugs develop resistance to existing drugs. Sales of new antibiotics are too low for big pharma to recoup its investments, and public measures to encourage more activity aren’t moving the needle. (Bloomberg)

CARCINOGENIC TALC COSTS JOHNSON & JOHNSON PLENTY

Johnson & Johnson was ordered by a jury to pay US$4.69 billion (about ZAR62 billion) to women who claimed asbestos in the company’s talc products caused them to develop ovarian cancer, marking the sixth-largest product-defect verdict in U.S. history. The award of US$4.14 billion in punitive damages on top of the US$550 million meant to compensate each of 22 women and their families for their loss. The verdict by jurors in St. Louis city court came in the first test of plaintiffs’ claims of an asbestos-ovarian cancer link in use of J&J’s iconic baby powder. The asbestos cases are part of more than 9 000 claims alleging that J&J’s talc products cause cancer. The company said it will appeal. (IOL)

Is Describing Someone In Racial Terms A Manifestation Of Racism And Dismissible Misconduct?

In the case of Rustenburg Platinum Mine v SAEWA obo Bester and others [2018] ZACC 13, the court found that whether describing a person by race was to be regarded as derogatory was something that was to be objectively established accordingly to the likely perception of a reasonable person. What follows is a summary of the case based on the media release issued by the Constitutional Court.

To read more click here. 
 

Contact: Nicci Whitear – Labour Law Specialist - nicci@austensmith.co.za - 033 392 0500
191 Pietermaritz Street, Pietermaritzburg, www.austensmith.co.za

the pcb welcomes the following new members:

Motor Industry Manufacturers Association – Employer representative body for the retail motor industry – 011 886 6300
Bizzacc PMB (Pty) Ltd – Accounting, tax and consulting – 082 938 8967
Adcorp Blu – Providing solutions in chemical, manufacturing and energy, automotive, agricultural, construction and engineering sector – 033 897 5900  
PC Barnard Attorneys – Legal services – 033 3424228
Bidvest Bank – Banking services – 031 5148210
Agent Booth – Photographer – 071 107 9749
Electrocom – Telecommunications and network services – 033 815 1000
Paragon Steel Structures – Design and manufacture of steel structures and installation thereof.  Repair and replacement of industrial roofs – 033 386 8270

To find out more about chamber membership and the many benefits click here.