Mr Price counts cost of Covid as businesses see the light at last

BUSINESS conditions in the private sector moved into positive territory in October for the first time in more than a year as an easing of lockdown restrictions supported a recovery in activity, according to the latest IHS Markit SA purchasing managers’ index. The economy-wide gauge of business conditions rose to 51 index points from 49.4 in September, the first time it has edged above the neutral mark since April 2019.

Pharmacare agreed to make the Covid-19 vaccine candidate being developed by Johnson & Johnson at a factory in SA, a move that could

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help with distribution throughout Africa. The drugmaker has the capacity to produce 300-million doses a year at the plant in Port Elizabeth if the shot is approved, it said.

SHARES in Telkom logged their biggest oneday gain after the fixedline operator said halfyear earnings likely grew by almost a quarter.

and home retailer Mr Price warned that its earnings would be 23% to 28% lower in the 26 weeks to endSeptember compared to the same period a year before. It expects headline earnings per share to fall to 319.1c341.3c. In August, it

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forecast a drop of at least 20%. This is due to the closure of all clothing, sports and home stores in April due to lockdown restrictions, the closures of some stores until June and weaker sales.

American Platinum again shut its converter plant, disrupting the flow of refined metal from the world’s second-largest

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supplier of platinum group metals for the second time in 2020.

Electoral Commission of SA would need R70m it has not budgeted for to organise registration for 2021’s local government elections in adherence with Covid-19 safety protocols, according to chief electoral officer Sy Mamabolo.

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