Over 50 countries banned from SA; PPC delays results again; Capitec’s 78% profit slump

By Claire Badenhorst

• South Africa’s largest cement maker, PPC, has delayed the release of its full-year earnings for a third time as it continues to fix accounting errors and strives to finalise a refinancing plan. The 128-year-old business released a SENS statement on Wednesday saying it will only release its full-year earnings next week. “PPC has received dispensation from the JSE in terms of this extended reporting date given the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on the business, the complexities of finalising the year-end audit as well as the impact of the restructuring and refinancing project underway,” the statement reads. The stock has lost almost 90% of its value in the past 12 months, valuing the company at R813m but shares jumped at the news that the crisis may soon be resolved, gaining 16%. PPC has seen a resurgence of activity since South Africa eased some of its lockdown restrictions, recording a double-digit growth in cement volumes in June and July with a continued high rate in August and September. For more information, you can go to BizNews.com.
• It’s been a difficult year for businesses in general and South African lender Capitec has certainly had its share of woes. This week, the bank reported a 78% slump in headline profit to R650m for the six months to end-August. Earlier in the year, the group warned shareholders to brace for an earnings loss of at least 70%, blaming the impact of Covid-19 on its customers and their inability to keep up with loan repayments. The group impaired R5.8bn for bad debts and rescheduled payments for R7.5m in loans. Despite the impact of the virus, the number of active retail banking clients grew by 6% to 14.6 million. For more on Capitec’s results, visit BizNews.com.
• With international flights opening from today, all eyes were on international relations minister Naledi Pandor as she announced the list of countries from which ordinary tourists would be banned until further notice. Pandor said South Africa would assess each country’s risk by comparing it to our own level of coronavirus risk. Leisure travellers from high risk countries will not, for the time being, be allowed to enter South Africa. Borders will gradually open, but for now, the red countries include France, the Netherlands, Switzerland, the United Kingdom and the United States.