BN Daybreak Tues 24 Feb - Global Tariffs, AI Shockwaves, and SA’s R50bn Budget Windfall

Today’s BizNews Daybreak, hosted by Alec Hogg, covers sweeping international developments, market-rattling AI advancements, and crucial South African economic updates. Here is a breakdown of the key stories:

Global Tariffs & Geopolitics: The White House is preparing a formal directive to increase the global tariff rate to 15%. Additionally, tensions between the US and Iran remain high, with the primary risk being the potential blockage of oil delivery from the Gulf Coast, which could push oil prices to $100.

AI Disruptions & Market Moves: IBM shares tumbled 13% after Anthropic announced that its Claude code tool can modernize the Cobalt software language. This AI disruption led author Nassim Taleb to warn of impending software bankruptcies. On the M&A front, Paramount raised its all-cash bid to buy Warner Bros Discovery to $30 a share.

Gold & Crypto: Gold surged 3% overnight to reach $5,250 an ounce. In contrast, Bitcoin lost 4%, dropping to $63,500.

UK Political Scandal: UK police arrested Peter Mandelson, the former British ambassador to the US, on suspicion of misconduct in public office. This arrest follows the release of emails allegedly showing him forwarding government information to Jeffrey Epstein.

South Africa's Budget Windfall: Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana will present the national budget with an estimated R50 billion windfall in additional revenue, driven by high gold and platinum commodity prices. Economist Dawie Roodt advises using these funds to cut corporate taxes and adjust personal income tax brackets, warning heavily against using the surplus to increase government spending.

Local Parliamentary Inquiries: The ad hoc committee investigating police and political capture has drawn heavy criticism. Ian Cameron expressed disappointment, stating the proceedings resembled a "soap opera" driven by TikTok likes instead of serious questioning.

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