FINopsis

I decided this morning that I will be blogging every Wednesday about my reads of Africa as a continent and what it has to offer. Here are some insights that caught my attention this morning..... Some unknown facts about South Africa's new finance minister, Nhlanhla Nene,  He farms cabbages and sold life policies — 8 things you didn't know about Nhlanhla Nene , The South African couple selling olive oil to the rest of Africa,  Olive oil company learns that a good product means little if you can’t sell it , Turning solid waste into opportunity,  Tanzania: Solid Waste Can 'Grow Economy' , Africa's richest man has ambitious plans,  Africa’s Richest Man to Revive Dangote Cement London IPO , Steinhoff’s (JSE:SHF) former chairman has something to cheer about,  Wiese Sees Ray of Light After Losing Billions on Steinhoff , A good time to visit Kenya?  Kenya will issue African travelers visas on arrival , Here is a good read on the impact electricity...

Today marks the last week in February! What a crazy thought that we are almost through two months of the year already. Here's what I've been reading today, The impact of tech on children is huge and can be both positive and negative, this piece highlights some scary stats,  Children struggle to hold pencils due to too much tech, doctors say A local small-cap fund manager's stock picks post-Zuma/Zexit,  Shopping List for Zexit . In today's push for passive investment management, can active management still be of use?  Reduce Your Risk With Active Management , The expat salary destinations are....... The World’s Highest Paid Expats Live in This Place  and more on Mumbai, the new global attraction for expats,  The world’s expatriates are booking a passage to India to get the biggest pay packets , Stability of dictatorship?  China will scrap limit on presidential terms, meaning Xi Jinping can stay on , How Germany is trying to prevent the Afr...

Happy Thirsty Thursday folks! As always, delightful to share with you my reads of this morning 🔜 Let's kick off this morning with some positive news , from the outside in, it seems as though Cape Town is facing a mammoth task trying to weather the drought that has been wreaking havoc in the city since last year, however, optimism in the city is growing at a rapid pace,  For the first time in a long time, I'm optimistic Here is a great summary of the 2018 South African Budget Speech with comments,  2018 BUDGET SAICA TAX SUMMARY AND COMMENT  and the South African Government sets aside R4.2bn for the acquisition of about 291,000ha of strategically located land,  State allots R4.2bn to buy strategic land . After the above, I think it appropriate for us all to read this piece,  The financial magic of living like a minimalist . And then, a good piece on managing your career,  How to Manage Your Career  plus for the leaders and managers ou...

Happy Wacky Wednesday folks! Here is what I'm reading this morning............. More lessons from Carillion,  Carillion case study: All was not what it seemed Discovery Limited (JSE: DSH) forging ahead!  Discovery to integrate FNB credit card JV into own bank  and some more detail around their latest trading update,  Discovery Limited - Unaudited Interim Results And Cash Dividend Declaration For The Six Months Ended 31 December 2017 Some gas mileage myths busted,  5 gas mileage myths that are wasting your money Paul Singer's take on Bitcoin, very interesting.... Hedge-fund honcho Singer says bitcoin is ‘one of the most brilliant scams in history  and  Venezuela Is Jumping Into the Crypto Craze Time to buy Walmart?  Home Markets Walmart's stock marks worst daily point drop in its history as a publicly traded entity and finally, we are looking forward to the South African Government's Budget Speech today at 2pm South African time..... Gi...

Morning folks, here is what I'm reading this morning: Reinsurers are feeling the heat from the devastating hurricane activity in the Caribbean in 2017,  Reinsurers Hit by Catastrophe Losses, Rising Competition Is lithium the next big commodity?  Platinum's Lesson for Lithium-Ion Batteries Interesting read on Pyongyang's cyber army  Inside North Korea’s Hacker Army Why Silicon Valley billionaires are prepping for the apocalypse in New Zealand Looking to buy property in South Africa?  Residential property: A 10-year bear market The Japanese lesson for SA

Today marks the first day since the swearing in of South Africa's new president. The JSE has been buoyed by the latest political developments and we see renewed interest in South African assets. Here are some of the reads this morning that caught my attention: South African stocks surge after Zuma steps down Short traders might be caught with their pants down,  Ramaphosa rally leaves short traders left red-faced The market seems to be cheering Discovery's (JSE: DSY) latest trading statement for the half year,  Discovery shares bounce back 9% Steinhoff (JSE: SHF) appointed a CRO to help the group recover from its latest slump,  Steinhoff appoints chief restructuring officer How safe is Crypto?  Trader Charged With Stealing $2 Million in Crypto The super tower construction boom in Asia,  Supertall Towers Are Driving an Elevator Revolution A very interesting piece on how China has gained access to the African continent through one of the most unlikely...

South Africa as a nation is facing a new dawn with the resignation of Jacob Zuma last night thus I think it appropriate to start with some good news this morning, 'Farmer of the year' jumps right back to work after attack Top medical student makes history Here is the latest on the state of our nation: Ramaphosa in charge of SA after Zuma finally resigned - As it happened South Africa, you’re getting a new president today And to a lesser extent,  The disastrous legacy of South Africa’s President Jacob Zuma Meanwhile, things are heating up at the Gupta residence in Saxonworld,  Gupta latest: Atul in talks, Ajay officially under arrest And, our hearts go out to the children of Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Florida shooting: At least 17 dead in high school attack   On the business front , it seems Viceroy is sticking to their guns on Capitec,  Viceroy hits back at Capitec  and Jeff Bezos is showing no sign of slowing down...

As the South African tax season is upon us, here are some interesting tax reads: SARS to hold sugar tax roadshows in March SARS Taxpayers Facing Legal Action Due To Arrears Taxation of cryptocurrencies still unclear The taxman goes to church Tax break for voluntarily retrenched employees Oceana [JSE: OCE] CEO's suprise move raises eyebrows: Oceana’s Kuttel quits with immediate effect Surprise move by Oceana’s CEO raises eyebrows Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA) booming in Deutschland: Tesla a hit in Germany, which is the fastest-growing region for electric vehicles Metair (JSE: MTA) gearing up for soaring battery demand: Why Metair predicts an earnings surge The Woolworths (JSE:WHL) team have found a gap in that market for high-end grocers: David Jones expands to New Zealand as commitment to food strategy stays strong

A week or so ago I ran a quick and dirty analysis on one of the most promising pharmaceutical companies in South Africa namely, Ascendis Health ( Share code: ASC ) Per their latest annual report, Ascendis is a fast-growing health and care brands company consisting of three divisions, Consumer Brands (OTC medicines, vitamins, sports nutrition and skin care products); Phyto-Vet (plant and animal health); and Pharma-Med (prescription drugs and medical devices). The company has expanded internationally with acquisitions in Spain, Europe and Cyprus representing some of the leading brands pharmaceutical across these locations (see https://citizen.co.za/business/business-news/1131697/ascendis-health-turns-to-europe/ ). Currently, the company is selling products in more than 140 countries, including 50 in Africa. The company has a very experienced and suitably qualified management team and currently ranks among the top 4 pharma companies in South Africa. Below is an extract of the segmenta...