Star 2026-01-15

The global unemployment rate is expected to hold steady in 2026, the United Nations said Wednesday, but cautioned the labour market's seeming stability belies a dire shortage of decent jobs. The UN's International Labour Organization said the global economy and labour market appeared to have weathered recent economic shocks better than expected. But the ILO warned that efforts to improve global job quality had stagnated, leaving hundreds of millions of workers wallowing in poverty, even as trade uncertainty risked cutting into workers wages. The global unemployment rate was estimated at 4.9 percent last year and the year before, and is now projected to remain at a similar level until 2027, a report from the UN labour agency said. That amounts to 186 million people out of work this year, it…

Geoeconomic confrontation has emerged as the most pressing global risk for 2026, underscoring a world increasingly shaped by rivalry, fragmentation and economic weaponisation, according to the World Economic Forum’s (WEF) Global Risks Report 2026 released on Wednesday. The report, now in its 21st edition, warns that geopolitical tensions, rising economic volatility and accelerating technological change are converging to create an era of heightened uncertainty. Half of the more than 1 300 global leaders and experts surveyed expect the global outlook over the next two years to be turbulent or stormy, while only 1% anticipate a period of calm. Geoeconomic confrontation — defined by the use of trade restrictions, sanctions, industrial policy and economic leverage to advance national interests — climbed eight places to top the near-term risk rankings for 2026.…

Economic growth in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) strengthened in 2025 and is expected to pick up further over the next two years, supported by easing inflation, improving financial conditions and stronger investment and exports. This is according to the World Bank’s Global Economic Prospects: Sub-Saharan Africa regional report released on Wednesday. The bank said growth in the region is estimated to have risen to 4.0% in 2025 from 3.7% in 2024. The improvement was driven in part by moderating inflation and higher-than-expected commodity prices, particularly for gold, other precious metals and coffee, which boosted fiscal revenues in several countries. However, the report notes that performance across the region remained uneven, with growth slowing among some industrial commodity exporters while strengthening in others. Divergent trends were evident among SSA’s three largest economies.…

Minister Steenhuisen says vaccination is part of comprehensive state strategy to eradicate FMD Agriculture Minister John Steenhuisen has confirmed that government is moving ahead with a long-term plan to vaccinate South Africa’s entire national cattle herd as part of a comprehensive strategy to eradicate foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) and restore the country’s FMD-free status. Steenhuisen delivered an update on the state of FMD during a briefing on Wednesday, acknowledging the severe impact recent outbreaks have had on farmers across the country. Already almost 2 million animals have been vaccinated since the importation of vaccines from Botswana began in 2025, and more than R72 million has been spent by government on these imported from Botswana. The minister emphasised that regaining FMD-free status was a monumental task that would not be achieved overnight.…

China's towering annual trade surplus surpassed $1 trillion for the first time last month, data showed Monday, as a sharp drop in shipments to the United States was offset by surging exports to other major markets. Presidents Xi Jinping and Donald Trump reached a tentative truce to their fierce trade war when they met in late October, agreeing a pause to painful measures that included lofty tit-for-tat tariffs. Exports have served as a key economic lifeline for China as trade and relations with the United States and others have fluctuated in recent years. That has helped temper a prolonged debt crisis in the country's vast property sector and sluggish domestic spending, which have weighed on growth and are among the most pressing issues facing Beijing. Exports climbed 5.9 percent year-on-year…

Northam Platinum Holdings performed well in the six months to December 31, 2025 after platinum group metals 4E (PGMs) produced from own operations increased by 3.7%, a production report showed. The mining group's shares surged 5.63% to R404.06 in early trade on the JSE after the report was released on Wednesday morning - the price has increased markedly from only R110.75 a year ago. Chrome concentrate production increased by 14.8%, compared to the corresponding 6-month period ended December 31, 2024. "Our operations performed well. Zondereinde is benefitting from logistics decongestion from the ongoing shift of UG2 stoping from the western to the higher-yielding eastern portions of the mine, as well as an increase in mining productivity from focused Merensky stoping in the Western extension," group directors said in the report.…