The Coega Industrial Development Zone received another investment boost on Wednesday with the turning of the sod for a R300m air separation plant. Air Products South Africa says the new facility, to be commissioned in the second half of next year, promises a new era of sustainability for the Eastern Cape gas industry. The state-of-the-art plant, the first in the province, will manufacture and supply industrial and ... read more

 Informal traders, whom the Department of Trade and Industry says will benefit from its controversial draft Licensing of Businesses Bill, say they do not support it. Chairperson of the South African Informal Traders Alliance, Thabiso Pita, says he believes the bill is autocratic, because it suppresses informal traders and it has too much administration cost and fees. He says the effect of the bill on the informal s... read more

Mobile telecommunications company Vodacom has been judged to have the best reputation of South Africa's top 20 Johannesburg Stock Exchange-listed companies. The Reputation Institute says Vodacom scored 74.17 out of a possible 100 points in the 2013 RepTrak Pulse survey, which was a 6.64-point improvement on its performance last year. Old Mutual was ranked second highest and Pick n Pay third. Telkom did not feature ... read more

 The Eastern Cape Development Corporation is increasing its efforts to secure a greater share of the national export market to the east. This, as it prepares to place seven local companies on a 30-month permanent trade fair in Ningbo, China. ECDC CEO, Sitembele Mase says they hoping to open opportunities for Eastern Cape companies to access the large Chinese consumer market. The first South African company to exhibi... read more

 A fifth project could soon be under construction in the Coega Industrial Development Zone. Metrominute reports that all the requirements are now in place for a start to the construction of premises to be occupied by an investor who will manufacture the towers that hold wind turbines. Economic Development MEC Mcebisi Jonas recently announced in his budget that R82m had been allocated to the Coega Development Corpora... read more

 The SA Chamber of Commerce and Industry says business confidence remained fragile and in decline last month. The Business Confidence Index sank from 93 in February 2013 to 90.4 in March -- its lowest level since April 2000. In March, the BCI was 5.3 points below the March 2012 level, and 2.6 points lower than in February 2013. Sacci CEO, Neren Rau says the monthly decline was largely caused by the indicators of... read more

 The wool market has once more benefited from a weak Rand. Cape Wools says its Merino indicator gained 1.9% on the previous week to close at R114.25 p/kg for clean wool on Wednesday. Spokesperson, Ona Viljoen, says the rand slid to its lowest level in four years against the US dollar following the release of worse than expected current account deficit figures. Ninety nine percent of the more than 7 900 bales of ... read more

 South Africans continue to experience immense pressure in their ability to service their debt. This is according to the latest FNB Household debt service risk index figures for the fourth quarter of 2012. FNB economist, John Loos says the figures came in at 6.55%, a marginal improvement from the previous quarter. He says despite this slight improvement, consumers continue to be vulnerable to external factors, be i... read more

 The export order for engines from Ford's engine plant in Struandale, Port Elizabeth, to the United States announced last year is a tremendous vote of confidence in South Africa. That's the word from Ford Motor Company Group vice president and president of Asia Pacific, Dave Schoch, who was in Port Elizabeth on Monday to visit the engine plant. Speaking to Algoa FM News, Shock said that exporting engines to the US f... read more

 Wool prices dropped at this week's sale in an apparent downward correction following the sharp increases of the past few months. Cape Wools says its Merino indicator shed 2.8% to close at R110.70 p/kg for clean wool. However, the indicator was still up almost 27% on the opening level and 95% higher than at the same sale last season. Spokesperson Ona Viljoen says traders reported orders as being "patchy&quo... read more

 ... read more

Nissan South Africa says the Datsun brand is set to return to South Africa. In a statement on Friday, the company said the new generation Datsu will be launched by the end of 2014. It says this follows a global decision in 2010 to re-introduce the Datsun brand as part of the company's ambitious plan to achieve eight percent of the global market share and eight percent operating profit by fiscal year 2016. The Datsu... read more

 Wool prices improved slightly at this week's sale. Cape Wools says its merino indicator gained half a percent on the sale a fortnight ago to close at R113.83 p/kg for clean wool. Spokesperson, Ona Viljoen, says traders reported reluctance from some clients to buy at current levels, while demand from other areas remained firm. She says wool receipts at brokers to date were up 10% compared with the corresponding p... read more

 The wool market came under pressure at this week's sale after last week's record high. Cape Wools says its Merino indicator shed 1.8% on last week to close the day at R110.46 p/kg for clean wool. Spokesperson, Ona Viljoen, says this still 26% up on the opening level. She says the market appeared to be without direction while resistance to the high price levels may also have contributed to the lower prices. Ap... read more

 Consumer prices in South Africa edged higher in December, posing a headache for the country's central bank as it meets to discuss efforts to kick-start the economy. Statistics South Africa reported that the consumer price index increased 5.7% from the level a year ago, higher than the 5.6% rate seen in November. Prices for food, housing and transport all rose, further pressuring hard-hit South Africans. The data... read more