1962: First performance of the Rolling Stones as a group at the
Marquee Club in London.

Avoid complications today, on Simplicity Day.

UMHLANGA DRIVING KZN PROPERTY GROWTH

The MD of Seeff Berea, Roger Hoaten, has reported that the property market in KwaZulu-Natal has fared well in 2018 compared to 2017. According to current sales figures from Seeff licensees in KZN, a 9% increase in value for the first half of 2018 compared to 2017 was noticeable, he said. Contributing factors include an interest rate cut to 6.5% and an inflow of new developments across the Umhlanga region, including Sibiya. According to Seeff Umhlanga, it recorded a 31% growth in March this year compared to March 2017. It anticipated a better second half, based on historical annual statistics. (IOL)

RAMAPHOSA WALKING TIGHTROPE OVER LAND

The land debate is largely a political tactic to neutralise the EFF and radical elements in the ANC, BMI Research, a unit of Fitch Group, said yesterday. In its outlook for SA’s agriculture sector, BMI said the call for expropriation of land without compensation was also about catering to black voters in the upcoming 2019 general elections. BMI said president Cyril Ramaphosa, despite growing pressure from various political factions, had successfully maintained positive investor outlook with rating agencies Fitch Ratings, Moody’s and S&P Global Ratings, which held SA’s sovereign debt outlook at stable. BMI said based on Ramaphosa’s remarks, his “business-friendly profile” and commitment to improving investor sentiment, it believed that the president would favour practical solutions instead of Mugabe-style land grabs. (BDLive)

… AS CRONIN WADES INTO DEBATE

South Africa’s plan to expropriate land in order to reverse the skewed racial patterns of land ownership and accelerate the serially delayed land reform process would target property that belongs to black and white citizens. This is the view of deputy public works minister Jeremy Cronin, who said that “no one is exempt from expropriation”, adding land is expropriated in the public interest to build dams or put transmission cables on land. He spoke yesterday at the Property Sector Charter Council meeting in Johannesburg. Cronin’s views are in stark contrast to those held by his colleagues – notably minister of co-operative governance and traditional affairs Zweli Mkhize who reportedly said property that is black-owned or controlled by traditional leaders won’t be targeted. In recent weeks, Mkhize and other government officials have been on a charm offensive with traditional leaders, saying the state won’t act on a recommendation to repeal/amend the Ingonyama Trust Act or dissolve the trust itself. The recommendation was made in 2017 by a high-level panel led by former president Kgalema Motlanthe. (Moneyweb)

VICEROY CAPITALISES ON NEGATIVE PUBLICITY IT CREATES - REPORT

Viceroy, which burst onto the public scene after its report in December flagged irregularities at disgraced retailer Steinhoff International, plagiarised its way to influence. The short-seller, which was founded by a British former social worker, is little more than a communications agent for a number of hedge funds who profited from the negative publicity it generated, according to a report commissioned by Business Leadership SA (BLSA). BLSA felt it necessary to commission the report on short selling as "part of our broader role of facilitating an understanding of how our financial markets operate in the era of fake news", CEO Bonang Mohale said. Viceroy "substantially" plagiarised the work of London-based Portsea Asset Management that had issued its own report on Steinhoff six months prior to Viceroy publishing its work, Intellidex said. "A study of the two reports reveals the extent of the plagiarism. In some cases entire sentences and tables were copied, while there is not one reference to the work of Portsea in the Viceroy report," said Stuart Theobald, Intellidex chairman and lead author (BDLive)

NENE WANTS ANSWERS FROM ESKOM UNION

Finance minister Nhlanhla Nene has dared Eskom unions to table proposals on how the fiscus can foot the bill for wage increases when they meet with him. This was after the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM), Solidarity and the National Union of Metalworkers of SA (Numsa) had sought intervention from Nene and public enterprises minister Pravin Gordhan after they failed to reach an agreement with Eskom on Tuesday. Nene’s office explained yesterday that the unionists would have to attend the meeting when it eventually happened in their capacity as both workers and taxpayers, with each role requiring a different approach. "Should it be that they want the fiscus to fund the proposed wage increases, the minister of finance would kindly request that they meet him wearing two hats: (a) as trade unionists and (b) as taxpayers. As trade unionists, they can request the funding, but as taxpayers, they can explain how they propose to finance the funding they request," said the finance ministry. (BDLive)

IT’S TIME TO REGULATE STREAMING, SAYS MULTICHOICE

MultiChoice, the pay-TV operator that continues to bleed subscribers, is fighting tooth and nail to remain relevant amid tough competition from online streaming services. The pay-TV operator lost more than 100 000 premium subscribers in the previous financial year. It has lost a further 40 000 subscribers to date. MultiChoice SA CEO Calvo Mawela attributed this loss of business to unregulated competition from video-streaming company Netflix, saying it had an unfair advantage as it was not under any regulatory pressure in SA. However, MultiChoice, which owns DStv, said it was aware that failure to adapt its business model could make it a victim of digital disruption. (BDLive)

FOOTWEAR WORKERS PUT ON THEIR STRIKE SHOES

As the country’s strike season intensifies, footwear workers became the latest sector on Wednesday to down tools over wage offers. According to the South African Clothing and Textile Workers’ Union (Sactwu), 10 000 workers took part in the strike on its first day. Workers are striking over the sector employers’ final wage offer of 6.25%. It was rejected by unions, which have tabled a 9.5% demand. Affected companies include Oudtshoorn Footwear, Dick Whittington Shoes and Bresan Footwear, based in KZN and the Western Cape. (BDLive)

SAA BOSS FLIES INTO FLAK

South African Airways CEO Vuyani Jarana has angered the South African Transport and Allied Workers’ Union (Satawu) by giving an undertaking to trade union Solidarity that the state-owned national carrier would immediately start looking for a strategic equity partner in the private sector. Solidarity provided detail yesterday of a written undertaking by Jarana that the search for a strategic partner for the deeply indebted airline would begin immediately. Satawu spokeswoman Zanele Sabela said the five unions that represented workers at SAA had not been informed of the decision to start looking for an equity partner immediately. Satawu represents the majority of unionised workers at SAA Technical and Airchefs. None of the unions has a majority across the group and coalitions shift in line with interests. (BDLive)

SMALL CAP STOCKS PRICED FOR PROFIT

Companies that fall outside of the JSE’s 40 biggest firms, referred to as small-and mid-cap stocks, are among the cheapest in the world, but investors are largely ignoring them despite prospects for juicy returns, says Keith McLachlan, a fund manager at AlphaWealth. SA’s small-cap sector was trading at almost the same lows experienced during the global financial crisis, McLachlan, a small-cap specialist, said. He has benchmarked the JSE’s small-and mid-cap indices against similar indices worldwide, finding they rank consistently near the bottom of the pile when measuring the price of the index against the value of its profit, assets and revenue. Only Italy’s small-caps were cheaper, but SA’s fundamentals were better, he said. As the economic outlook improved, companies in this sector were likely to generate a good return. (BDLive)

LOW-COST PLATFORM SETS SIGHTS ON STOKVELS

Thomas Brennan, the former head of digital innovation at Discovery Health, says he has launched SA’s lowest-cost investment platform. Franc, a smartphone app, would allow stokvel members to invest in money market and exchange-traded funds (ETFs) for ZAR5 a month, the company said yesterday. Like stocks, ETFs are listed on the JSE, but they track an index such as the Top 40, or a commodity, bonds or a basket of assets. Access to Franc is free for the first six months and there is no minimum investment amount. Franc, a member of Rand Merchant Investment Holdings’ fintech investment arm, launches at a feverish time for financial technology companies. A number of these are seeking to lower costs and improve access to financial services products. Franc’s two investment options are the Allan Gray money market fund and Satrix 40, which tracks the performance of the 40 largest companies listed on the JSE. (BDLive)

ONLINE SHOPPING TRENDS TO SHAPE INDUSTRIAL PROPERTY

High-tech warehouses and distribution centres are fast becoming the most sought-after property assets in SA, with listed counters and private groups positioning themselves to benefit from future growth in online shopping and companies establishing supply chains. Industrial vacancy rates have dropped sharply across SA, largely thanks to the logistics sector supporting rental growth on lease renewals. It indicates growing demand for well-located high-spec warehousing and distribution centres. The latest industrial vacancy report of the South African Property Owners’ Association (Sapoa) shows that as at the end of December the overall national vacancy rate was 3.3%, down from 5.3% at the end of December 2016. (BDLive

GREEN ENERGY TO UNLOCK 60 000 JOBS

More than 60,000 jobs are expected to be created during the 27 new renewable energy plant projects being rolled out under the independent power producers (IPP) programme, valued at some ZAR56 billion. According to Workforce Staffing, a temporary employment service (TES) provider, energy minister Jeff Radebe stated that the 27 new renewable energy plant projects being rolled out under the IPP programme should result in the creation of some 61 600 jobs, mostly during the course of construction. These projects, valued at some ZAR56 billion, include the building of new wind and solar farms in Mpumalanga, large complex projects which will require the combined efforts of experts, artisans and both skilled and unskilled workers. (ANA)

SA NEEDS TO UP ITS TOURISM GAME

Understanding tourist demographics in SA could result in the country being seen as a more attractive tourist destination. Statistics SA’s most recent figures, reported on June 18, showed a 6.9% decline in foreign travellers arrivals in April 2018 from a year earlier, to roughly 1.3 million from about 1.4 million. Departures fell 9% and transits were down 4%. The US, UK, Germany, Netherlands, Switzerland, Australia, United Arab Emirates, Sweden, Belgium, France, Italy, Canada, France, Saudi Arabia, China and Denmark account for 78% of inbound tourists. Reviewing SA’s approach to tourism requires an understanding of tourists’ differing needs, Mastercard’s senior vice-president of market insights, Sarah Quinlan, said at a Mastercard roundtable in Singapore yesterday. SA is losing momentum as a tourist destination, data suggests. Mastercard says that in the past eight years, travel and tourism has grown by 17.3% in the 10 fastest-growing global destinations. In emerging markets, tourism's contributions to GDP grew from 30% in 1980 to 45% in 2015 and is expected to reach 57% by 2030 — but this hasn't translated to Africa. (BDLive)

EMERGING MANAGERS PROGRAMME
 

Starts: 18th July 2018

New and Emerging Managers are tasked with the responsibility of managing a team to achieve results for the first time. They have to navigate a new environment, having moved past technical task based familiarity to managing others. The purpose of this programme is to take delegates through the fundamentals of management, addressing competencies required for effective management and covering everything from the functional competencies required of a manager, to the more process orientated people management.
 

This course is aimed at individuals who are earmarked as future leaders/managers in an organisation, or individuals who have recently been promoted to management level and are now having to navigate a new landscape. This practical 8 week programme will enable delegates to develop a strong foundation for effective leadership and people management.
 

Duration

Six days (2 block sessions)

Contact:

For more information please contact Adiela Raiman: 
T: +27 31 260 4665
E: raiman@ukzn.ac.za 

EMPLOYMENT EQUITY COMPLIANCE

TRAINER:  Michelle Isaac – Training Leadership Consulting
Michelle is an expert HR Business Partner and Manager with extensive experience in the Retail, Logistics, Sales and Professional services Industries

Time:  08:30 – 12:30
Venue:  Chamber House, Royal Showgrounds
COST (includes vat)
Members    R635-52 p/p, R605-27 p/p for 3/more, R554-83 p/p for 5/more
Non-members    R736-40 p/p, R706-15 p/p for 3/more, R655-71 p/p for 5/more
  
OVERVIEW
•    Recognise the basics of employment equity.
•    Understand how to be on the right side of the Department of Labour.
•    Learn key insights and watch-outs – don’t make these mistakes!
•     Understand what to do if something has gone wrong.
WHO SHOULD ATTEND
HR Managers and Business Owners.