October 2026

Godongwana said the structural reforms are not abstract policy measures. National Treasury documents list progress in electricity, logistics, water, local government, rail and visa reforms. Godongwana said poorly maintained infrastructure, high water losses and weak municipal capacity have undermined service delivery.

Treasury said passenger rail journeys rose from 17 million in 2021/22 to 101 million in 2025/26. It said the Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa targets 232 million journeys in 2028/29. Treasury credited signal modernisation, rolling stock replacement and other infrastructure rollouts.

The wholesale electricity market launched internally with 32 participants. The next step is to finalise trading rules and open the market externally in 2027. Eleven private train operators will start running on the freight network in 2027.

Water projects worth more than R60 billion are now in the financing stage. Eight metro municipalities joined the Metro Trading Services Reform programme. Treasury said the White Paper on Local Government will be launched this week.Share

The same people said the deal needs a shareholder vote. They said the aim is to complete it by the end of the year.

AMSA shares rose by as much as 21% during trading in Johannesburg. That lifted the market value of the company to R1.3 billion.

The same people said the 10-year agreement with Likamva Resources, AMSA's local black economic partner, will end in early December. They said Likamva is unlikely to be part of the new ownership structure.

The IDC said it remains in talks with ArcelorMittal. It said the aim is "to find a lasting solution to the challenges facing the steelmaker with the objective of protecting South Africa’s vital steel-manufacturing capabilities".Share

Transport, housing and utilities, and insurance and financial services drove the rise. Transport inflation was 10.8% and added 1.5 percentage points. Housing and utilities inflation was 5.2% and added 1.3 percentage points.

Insurance and financial services inflation was 5.4% and added 0.6 of a percentage point. The index rose 0.4% from August to September. It did not change from July to August, and annual inflation was 4.3% in July.

Nedbank had expected core inflation to rise from 4.0% to 4.4%. The bank also forecast that fuel inflation would rise from 20% to around 27%. It said petrol prices rose 5.3% from one month to the next.Share

The fuel levy will fall by R3 per litre for diesel and R1.50 per litre for petrol from 4 November to 1 December 2026. After that, a lower relief of R1.50 per litre for diesel and R1 per litre for petrol will last until 5 January 2027. Godongwana said the measures will help ease cost of living pressures without compromising the sustainability of the budget.

Treasury expects the deficit to reach 4.3% of GDP this year, down from 4.5% at the time of the Budget. Growth should reach 1.6% in 2027 and 2% by 2029. Revenue overruns of R17 billion came from higher precious metal prices. Godongwana said these commodity gains should fade over the medium term.

Government also released draft fiscal anchor legislation and published an amended Municipal Finance Management Act for public comment. Treasury said the fiscal anchor legislation will be gazetted for public comment this week.

Treasury Director General Duncan Pieterse said fuel levy relief helps households and consumption and lowers inflation, if done in a fiscally neutral way. On further action if oil price pressure continues, he said: "That is something we will continue to evaluate as the (Middle East) conflict continues."Share

The JSE All Share index closed at 109,658 points on Wednesday, down 0.7%. The Top 40 index fell to 101,739, down 0.8%.

The rand ended at R16.39 to the US dollar, stronger than R16.42 the day before. Gold was at $4,131 an ounce, down 0.3%. Brent crude was at $110.37 a barrel, up 1.5%.Share

The South African Police Service (SAPS) said the vehicles will bolster operational activities and so help ensure safer communities. National Police Commissioner Fannie Masemola is also set to attend the launch.

Integrated law enforcement teams will show their skills during the launch. SAPS said they will use simulations that depict real-life crime situations.Share

Police said the pair face charges of defeating the ends of justice, extortion and staging a crime scene. Gauteng police spokesperson Dimakatso Nevhuhulwi said both suspects are expected to appear in court.

The woman was reported missing on 8 October. Police said a ransom demand of R40,000 was sent to her family, allegedly from her cellphone.

Police said false reports and staged crimes divert investigators from cases where people are genuinely in danger. The police in Gauteng warned the public against making false reports or staging criminal incidents.Share

The launch will also introduce an Implementation Plan and a Transition Management Body. The fact that both appear at the launch shows the plan moves beyond policy to carrying out the changes.

The political and administrative leadership of 257 municipalities is expected to attend the event.Share

Treasury set aside R3.8bn for provinces to hire more than 3,500 social workers over the medium term. It also allocated R1.6bn through the district health programmes grant for pregnant women and young children. The criminal justice system gets R186m extra for forensic services and investigative capacity.

The department of women, youth and persons with disabilities gets R157.4m to coordinate the government's response to gender-based violence. The Human Sciences Research Council says a third of South African women have faced physical violence. Almost one in 10 have experienced sexual violence.

The South African Social Security Agency is working with banks to remove SRD beneficiaries who broke the income rules. The grant is R370 a month and has about 7-million beneficiaries. In all, 18.1-million people received social grants by the end of September.

Treasury warned that a legal challenge to the SRD grant regulations is a material expenditure risk that could unwind the savings. If the high court judgment is upheld, it estimates the annual cost could rise from R36bn to R74bn. That is a preliminary estimate.

Treasury director-general Duncan Pieterse said the government must decide what the grant is for. Civil society groups want a more generous universal basic income grant instead.Share

Tau said 234 private companies are now hosted across the zones, with a combined investment of over R47 billion. He said the SEZs Programme has created 134 478 jobs, of which 32904 are permanent.

The Fetakgomo-Tubatse zone has an investment pipeline of R52.6 billion. It is expected to create around 8 000 jobs in the short to medium term, and potentially 20 000 jobs over 10 years. Tau also outlined the zone's planned role in mineral beneficiation.

Tshitereke Matibe, the Limpopo MEC for Economic Development, Environment and Tourism, spoke for Premier Phophi Ramathuba. He said the province is committed to the zone, and the provincial government has committed R445 million to its infrastructure.Share

Treasury said the fiscal anchor will be based on principles and will not set numerical rules. Each administration must prepare a fiscal plan with its objectives and targets, in line with its electoral mandate.

Godongwana told the National Assembly that the approach "preserves flexibility in changing economic conditions while strengthening transparency, accountability and fiscal discipline". Treasury also said each government will keep responsibility for its fiscal choices.

Treasury released a Fiscal Anchors Discussion Document for public comment in March 2025. It offered two options: a numerical fiscal rule and a parliamentary procedures model. The document said slow growth and persistent deficits led to a tripling of public debt over 15 years.Share

Petrol drops by R1.50 per litre next month and by R1 in December. Diesel drops by R3 in November and by R1.50 the following month. Santaco said the relief starts on 4 November, and that the lower amounts run until 5 January 2027.

The South African National Taxi Council (Santaco) welcomed the relief and said there will be no immediate fuel-related fare increases while the industry talks to government. Spokesperson Mmatshikhidi Rebecca Phala said short-term steps alone cannot give a lasting solution to the cost pressures on the taxi industry.

Opposition parties criticised the move. ATM parliamentary leader Vuyo Zungula called the R10-billion relief temporary and said government could deal with illicit trade in the fuel sector, where he said about R10 billion is lost.

The EFF said the ANC is using the cut as an election ploy ahead of next month's local government polls. EFF spokesperson Sinawo Thambo said Parliament, not the National Treasury, should decide on raising and cutting taxes.Share

Chief Evidence Leader Matthew Chaskalson said Sifolo's evidence relies largely on intelligence documents that are only partly declassified. He said the order lets commissioners and evidence leaders see the documents, but not share them publicly. Chaskalson said the documents were "expressly not been declassified for the purposes of public dissemination."

Chaskalson also said that if the evidence is not heard in camera, the order as it stands stops the commission from hearing it.

Advocate Ben Winks appeared for amaBhungane, Daily Maverick and News24. He argued that giving the press access only after the hearing is not a workable remedy. He said delayed access would weaken public scrutiny of evidence and public confidence in the commission.

Lawyers for the media also said Sifolo should explain why he cannot share certain information. The commission also said it will engage with socialite Serge Cabonge and obtain a statement from him about claims in a voice recording played at the bail hearing of Shadrack Sibiya.Share

Treasury also cut its 2027 forecast to 1.6% from 1.8% in February. It expects growth of 2% by 2029. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) cut its own 2026 forecast for South Africa to 1%, from 1.4% at the start of the year.

Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana wrote in his foreword that structural reforms in energy, rail and tourism are removing barriers to growth. He said more competitive electricity and transport sectors will help cut costs for households and businesses over time.

Treasury estimates average inflation of 4.4% in 2026. Private-sector investment fell by 1.1% in the first half of 2026 compared with the same period in 2025. Public investment rose by 5.2% over the same period.

Treasury said risks to the outlook are tilted to the downside. In its worst-case scenario, oil rises above $100 per barrel in early 2027, and average growth from 2026 to 2029 is 1.5%. Under a reform scenario, real growth reaches 2.3% by the end of the medium term.Share

Musk is chief executive of both companies. He said he is not a member of either committee and is not involved in the talks, because he is a conflicted party. He said he thinks a merger would be a good idea.

Musk said a deal would need support from both sets of shareholders. He called a 50% vote among Tesla shareholders a high hurdle. He also said that to assume a merger is certain would be overstating it.

Reports put the combined value of the two companies at more than $3 trillion, and one report put it at about $3.5 trillion. Another report put SpaceX at more than $2 trillion and Tesla at nearly $1.5 trillion. Tech analyst Gene Munster of Deepwater Asset Management estimated a 95% chance of a deal in the next two years.Share

Godongwana spoke while delivering the Medium-Term Budget Policy Statement. He said corporate tax collections, helped by mining and high commodity prices, are projected at R398.5 billion. That is R34.2 billion above the budget estimate of R364.3 billion. Mineral and petroleum royalties rose by R6.8 billion.

The estimate for personal income tax rose to R846.4 billion and net VAT to R533.9 billion. The dividends tax estimate rose to R51.1 billion from R45.6 billion. Provisional corporate tax collections grew by 17.4% over the first six months, compared with 2025/26.

Some estimates fell. The fuel levy forecast dropped by R30.9 billion to R74 billion, because of temporary fuel levy relief from April to June 2026. The "other" tax category fell by R10.6 billion to R76 billion, after the repeal of the electricity generation levy from 1 January.

Godongwana warned that the commodity gains will fade. He said, "A large portion of this improvement is due to higher commodity prices, and these gains are expected to dissipate over the medium term."

The South African Revenue Service had collected R52.4 billion in tax debt by the end of September, out of a projected R126 billion for 2026/27. Godongwana also said the final design of a national online gambling tax will be announced in the February 2027 budget.Share

Three people familiar with the matter said the Israel Defense Forces were ready for a multi-day operation on the weekend of October 10. The sources said targets included nuclear facilities, sites linked to the Iranian regime and civilian infrastructure such as power plants.

The sources said the operation did not go ahead mainly because US President Donald Trump opposed resuming hostilities before the US midterm elections on November 3. White House spokeswoman Anna Kelly said the US would not launch strikes on Iran before the midterms.

Israeli officials reportedly presented an updated target list based on fresh intelligence. It included civilian infrastructure that Israel did not strike earlier this year.

One source said a joint restart of strikes in the coming weeks is "not an unreasonable scenario". US War Secretary Pete Hegseth visited Israel this week and held talks with Netanyahu.Share

Residents of Zwelisha told Malema they want help with jobs, water, electricity, roads and education or employment for matric graduates. Malema said the party will focus on infrastructure and on creating jobs in the province. He also said tourism can be very strategic for the economy of the municipality, the province and the country.

Malema spoke about the party's candidate for Mbombela. He said: "That's why we deployed our Deputy President here to be the mayoral candidate."

Malema also spoke about the police. He said gangsterism and a dysfunctional police force have eroded the authority of the state. He urged National Police Commissioner Fannie Masemola to restore order in the service.

Malema called on the President to release Minister Mchunu. He said an active minister on suspension should not be paid a lot of money.Share

The larger cut runs from 4 November 2026 to 1 December 2026. After that, the levy falls by R1.50 per litre for diesel and R1 per litre for petrol until 5 January 2027.

Treasury says it will fund the relief by returning R10 billion from the Central Energy Fund to the National Revenue Fund. Treasury director-general Duncan Pieterse said the money is not new and will not affect the fiscal framework. The Second Special Appropriation Bill still has to be adopted by the National Assembly.

Godongwana said: "Because we have rebuilt fiscal buffers, government is in a stronger position to respond, including by providing temporary fuel levy again." Treasury said the relief would ease cost of living pressures without harming the sustainability of the budget.

Treasury expects fuel revenue collections to be R30 billion lower than first expected in 2026/2027. It said the operational and design details are still being worked out.Share

Tirani Mthetho is the APC mayoral candidate for the Makhado Local Municipality. He said the party is self-funded and struggles to get its message across the country. He said some areas have no posters or not enough of them.

Mthetho said: "So sometimes it is very difficult for us to penetrate in other areas." He also said the APC, which he described as 19 years old, can still make it without a funder.Share

Commission spokesperson Phetho Ntaba said: "The affected vehicles were fitted with a side-impact airbag sensor with incorrect specifications." The commission urges owners to book an inspection at an authorised Hyundai dealership. Any remedial work costs the owner nothing.

The recall is one of more than 50 vehicle recalls by major brands this year. Others include BMW, Volkswagen and Toyota.Share

Phenye Vilakazi, chairperson of the Provincial Regulatory Entity in the department, gave the figures. He said the backlog stood at 4 921 on 31 December 2023. He said 3 368 adjudications have been done to date, and the remaining backlog is 1535.

Members of the Moruleng District Taxi Association (MODITA) say the department failed to process their applications. They say operators get hefty fines for operating without permits. One operator said he applied three years ago and went to a board meeting twice. He said he was told to wait 21 days for the third time and still has no permit.

The entity says the backlog comes from system failures. Vilakazi said it has adjudicated over 160 MODITA applications and those adjudications are complete. He said: "We cannot single out MODITA alone out of all association we have in the province."Share

Ntinga lived with Mcedisi in Alberton. The couple had a 2-year-old daughter, who survives her mother.

Mcedisi tried to kill himself 20 days after he reported Ntinga missing. The sentence was handed down on Tuesday.Share

McCarthy, a former Kaizer Chiefs centre back, equalised for Sabah six minutes before halftime. A Sabah player named Puchaz created the goal. It was the 22-year-old's first goal in the competition.

Guirassy scored Dortmund's opening goal in the 10th minute, with Felix Nmecha credited with the assist. He added the winner in the 53rd minute, set up by Joey Veerman. Guirassy has four goals in this season's Champions League.

Benni McCarthy remains South Africa's most prolific Champions League scorer with eight goals. Dortmund have now won five of five matches against Azerbaijani clubs.Share

National police spokesperson Brigadier Athlenda Mathe said the cases come from an incident on 22 July 2026. Police at the Beitbridge border post in Musina intercepted two vehicles allegedly bound for Malawi. Mathe said the vehicles were allegedly being moved from Mahikeng towards the border.

Mathe also said arrangements were made to get bank authorisation documents. The needed authorisation was allegedly not given, and fraudulent bank documents were then arranged. Police did not name the businessman.

A source said Carrim would face two counts relating to alleged motor vehicle theft in the Musina magistrate's court on Thursday. Police arrested him at OR Tambo International Airport as he tried to board an international flight. His bail application was postponed to 28 October, and he is in custody.

Two suspects are expected to appear before the Musina regional court on 27 October.Share

Gert Eastes, CEO of Ridge Cherry Farms, farms on 125ha near Rustenburg. He has about 300 seasonal workers and now grows 600 tonnes of cherries. He hopes to export 1,000 tonnes to China in October and to reach 2,000 tonnes later. He said: "We’ve been asking for this for ages".

China buys nearly 600,000 tonnes of cherries a year. South Africa holds 0.2% of global cherry volumes. Growers aim for early-season harvests so they can compete with supply from Chile and Argentina.

Wandile Sihlobo, chief economist at the Agricultural Business Chamber of South Africa, said the country already exports 55% of what it produces. He said export value could grow by at least 20% over the coming years.

Aucamp said the push into China is not a slight against the US but an effort to grow the sector. President Cyril Ramaphosa has said South Africa must prepare for possible exclusion from Agoa.Share

Coldstream is in Kou-Kamma Local Municipality and has fewer than 500 residents. Brown tap water is also a problem in nearby Storms River, which is 15km away. Van Staden says the water supply comes and goes.

A local review in May 2026 gave Kou-Kamma a Blue Drop compliance rate of 22%. That ranked the municipality third-last in the Eastern Cape. The review also says old asbestos water and sanitation pipes harm health and cause water losses.

Ivonne Busabwe earns R1 088 from the Expanded Public Works Programme. She travels 50km to Plettenberg Bay to withdraw her wages. She said she will not vote for the ANC again.

Kuzamakwethu Wulana says the only hope comes from nearby farms and firms, which he alleges are exploitative. Kou-Kamma and the Department of Water and Sanitation had not responded to requests for comment.Share

Sasol said on Wednesday that output at Secunda Operations and Natref fell in the three months ended September, compared with the previous quarter. Its mining business had the highest quarterly production in six years.

Sasol said Natref's residual crude desulphuriser will restart by the end of October. The company also said it expects volatile operating conditions to continue.Share

The authors report that a dual adenosine receptor antagonist restored the anti-tumour activity of T cells. Combined with anti-PD-1 therapy, it improved survival in the mice. This points to a possible new drug target for colorectal cancer immunotherapy. The study is peer-reviewed, but it used mice only, so the results may not hold in people.Share

The team compared 17 and 18-year-old girls too old for the 2014 programme with girls who were eligible for it. The study used 2,357 participants from public healthcare facilities in four provinces, and about one-quarter lived with HIV. In that group, infections fell from 29% to 4%. The researchers say it is too early to measure cervical cancer rates, so the study is observational and shows only infections. The page does not name a journal.Share