Inflation relief, but Cape Town declared ‘disaster’

THE inflation rate fell within the Reserve Bank’s target band in April for the first time in eight months, reinforcing chances that the rate-increase cycle may have come to an end. Consumer price inflation eased to 5.3% from 6.1% in March, Stats SA said. RETAILER TFG agreed to buy Australia’s Retail Apparel Group for a maximum of A$302.5-million (about R2.9-billion), the company said. It would pay cash for RAG and retain the company’s management, it said. TSOGO Sun managed to offset flat income growth from its casinos with a better performance from its hotels, the company said in its annual results statement. Overall income grew 8% to R13.2-billion, it said. SWISS drug manufacturer Novartis signed a memorandum of agreement with the SA Medical Research Council and the Department of Science and Technology, paving the way for greater investment in local medical research. THE Western Cape declared a drought disaster as it battled its worst water shortages in 113 years. Boreholes will be drilled at hospitals in Cape Town, a mobile desalination plant will be tested and the natural aquifer at Table Mountain will be tapped. THE City of Johannesburg has been hit by a crippling failure of its billing system, affecting more than half its April bills. This might result in a R1.3-billion cash shortfall. The DA said it suspected the system had been tampered with. THE mining industry staged a slight recovery in 2016, but the sector was smaller than in 1994, with many domestic issues weighing heavily, most notably the sharp drop in gold production, said Chamber of Mines CEO Roger Baxter. ECONOMIC growth slumped in March and could show a further decline when the April figures are released next month. After an increase of 1.1% in February, the Reserve Bank’s leading indicator fell to 0.4% month to month in March.