Flash Briefing: Fossil jaw found in Tibet; Cyril’s clean up claims 2 more; Tesla raise sparks shares

By Jackie Cameron

In today’s global news headlines:

  • The best-read story on The Wall Street Journal sets out new clues on human evolution. A fossil jaw found in the Himalayan Highlands of Tibet has got scientists excited. The bone, which belongs to a vanished human species called Denisovans, shows that our human relatives lived in the very cold climate and thin air of the Tibetan plateau more than 100,000 years before our own species showed up there.
  • In South Africa, President Cyril Ramaphosa’s anti-corruption drive has claimed another two scalps – National Laboratory Service Chief Executive Officer Joyce Mogale and Chief Financial Officer Sikhumbuzo Zulu. They have been fired in connection with the awarding of R200m worth of contracts and payments to service providers. Mogale and Zulu were suspended more than two years ago, with an investigation into corruption at the service dragging on until, in March, President Ramaphosa ordered the Special Investigating Unit to take action. He promised to clean up on graft soon after he took office last year.
  • A strong win for President Cyril Ramaphosa’s ANC in next week’s election would trigger a rally in asset prices, predicts Colin Coleman, head of sub-Saharan Africa at Goldman Sachs Group. He says support of 60% would give Ramaphosa a strong mandate for structural reforms. Speaking to Bloomberg Television, Coleman said that a good ANC win will provide the “political space” for Ramaphosa to implement his modernisation agenda, including fixing the many troubled state-owned enterprises.
  • On the JSE on Thursday, mining stocks were the big losers of the day. Leading them down were Sibanye shares, which lost more than 6%, and Harmony, which was down about 5%. 
  • Gold fell to its lowest in a week on Thursday, reports Reuters, as the US Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) doused expectations of a near-term rate cut and on lack of physical demand in Asia. Spot gold was down 0.5% to $1,270.49 per ounce.
  • In New York, the Tesla share price perked up on an announcement it would seek to raise about $2bn through debt and stock offerings. This is after the company overestimated the ability of the Model 3 sedan to generate enough cash to help Tesla become self-sustaining.
  • In the UK, Bank of England governor Mark Carney has warned that interest rates can be expected to rise with a smooth Brexit. He said growth of 1.5% is now expected in the UK, that’s up from just over 1%, as the global economy stabilises. Carney also told reporters he is willing to stay on his role as Bank of England governor if it will help the government “smooth” the Brexit transition.
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