Spreadsheet Ranger

Wasn't sure what to make the title, but with the Steinhoff revelation I was thinking, what if this is not the only one. There was MTN 2 years back that was as corrupt as it gets. PSG has a history of dealing with Christo, remember that KWV deal. Then there is the Resilient / Fortress ponzi scheme and the continues hammering at Capitec. These were all regarded as incredible businesses, but what if all of this was just a mask and what if there are more. What if Naspers is not what it appears for example. Just curious what is still "safe" on the JSE since the JSE seems unable to take action, given the the 360one report and not to mention Oakbay resources. I mean our TOP40 index seems under threat.

The app is working again. No ads. Sent from my SM-G920F using Tapatalk

Yo Phat, https://twitter.com/ZARX_xchange/status/971850969267961856?s=19 === We have a strong pipeline of listings, starting next month with a unique BEE share trading vehicle that only ZAR X technology and thought leadership could enable. We're rolling out new investment products this year. Eg of both is Bayhill, creating access through Zar X. Sent from my SM-G920F using Tapatalk

Absa is listing two NewFunds ETFs on the JSE: The NewFunds Low Volatility Equity ETF, which is made up of stocks that are considered to be more stable over time, and the NewFunds Value Equity ETF, which is made up of stocks that are considered 'cheap' or undervalued.

Ditto on the food bit. I eat far too much, I can buy an ETF. That looks delicious.

[video=youtube]https://youtu.be/HJpaqOFjJME Artist: Misfits Album: Famous Monsters Released: 1999

South Africa will see its first public autonomous vehicle trials during transport month in October this year. Speaking to Engineering news, executive director of the Mobility Centre for Africa (MCA), Victor Radebe, confirmed that the MCA had received government permission for the trials and that one of two electric-powered candidates are currently being considered for the test. The Z10 by EasyMile or the ARMA vehicle by Navya (both headquartered in France) are set to ferry passengers in three high-density locations as part of a trial to determine public perception, viability, and deployment capability in the country. Radebe said that Durban’s beachfront, Sandton’s Gautrain station, the CSIR’s innovation hub at the University of Pretoria, and the V&A Waterfront have all been earmarked as possible test locations. Autonomous vehicles In December BusinessTech reported that there was a conspicuous lack of regulation surrounding self-driving cars in South Africa. At the time, Patrick Bracher, director at law firm Norton Rose Fulbright, explained that the country’s laws may ultimately be similar to the UK’s recently published Automated and Electric Vehicles Bill. According to the UK’s proposed laws, if an accident is caused by an automated vehicle when driving itself – while insured at the time – and it causes anyone to suffer damages, then the insurer is liable for that damage caused to anyone. If the vehicle is not insured the owner of the vehicle is liable for the damage. A vehicle is considered to be ‘driving itself’ if it is operating in a mode in which it is not being controlled, and does not need to be monitored, by an individual. If it is being monitored or controlled, ordinary principles of negligence will presumably apply. The proposed legislation also has a chapter on the recharging of electric vehicles. If the accident or damage was to any extent caused by the injured party, the law of contributory negligence will be invoked which could result in a lesser fine or sentence. The Bill also deals with an accident resulting from unauthorized software alterations or failure to update software – cover may be excluded for that conduct. Insurers will be given a subrogated right (right to go directly after third-party) to claim against the person responsible for the accident.

I understand your question better now. I will need to ask the help of @SimonPB as I have no clue where to see the number of shorted shares, I always thought that would depend on the broker, because short shares actually doesn't exist it's just a contract between the short seller and the broker.

With an economy set to experience more growth than in recent years thanks to a change in political leaders who understand the importance of encouraging investment and stimulating economic development, the time is ripe for savvy property investors to make the most of potential capital growth. This is according to Chris Renecle, MD of Renprop, who says that even though the 2018 Budget Speech delivered by Finance Minister Malusi Gigaba earlier this week outlined some tax changes that will make the general cost of living and off-plan property investment more expensive due to the increase in VAT from 14% to 15%, investors who purchase residential property that is subject to VAT before 1 April 2018 stand to save more and gain more. “With regards to residential property sales, the increase in VAT will have an impact on estate agent’s commission, transfer and bond registration fees, as well as the sale price of property where the seller is VAT registered, as is the case with most off-plan sectional title developments,” says Renecle. Renecle points out that investors who purchase before implementation of the revised tax figures on 1 April 2018 will still be able to qualify for 14% VAT provided certain conditions are met. He explains that even if the handover of the property occurs after 1 April 2018, the purchase of the property will be subject to VAT at 14% if the offer to purchase is concluded before 1 April 2018, the payment of the purchase price and the registration of the property can happen on or after 1 April 2018, as the VAT-inclusive purchase price was determined and stated as such in the offer to purchase agreement. “Just 1% difference in VAT equates to R10 000 per R1 million spent. Investors who are interested in purchasing units in new sectional title developments stand to gain if they invest in the next month or so,” says Renecle. Source: Propert24

With a VAT hike to 15% on the horizon, South African consumers will be keeping an eye on the prices of the favourite brands, while retailers continue to market themselves as the best option for tightening budgets. In a recent 702 radio interview regarding its latest financial results, Shoprite CEO Pieter Engelbrecht claimed that the group’s chains were known to be the cheapest. Consumer price watchdog and comparison site, Retail Price Watch, has tested this claim by looking at the average price of a basket of 10 national brands (brands stocked by all stores) across Shoprite, Checkers (both members of the Shoprite Group), Pick n Pay, Spar and Makro, in stores around the country. The website also tracked price changes of those brands between February 2017 and February 2018 to see how these prices have changed over the past 12 months. Makro’s basket is some margin the cheapest at R176, R17 below that of Shoprite and Checkers, which came in joint second at R194, with Spar’s basket costing R201 and Pick n Pay’s R203. In 2017 Makro was also the cheapest by R17, with Pick n Pay and Shoprite and Checkers all within R3 of each other. “Consumers should make up their own minds as to whether this small basket is representative of the whole. At the very least it means they should be circumspect while shopping and not believe all retailers’ claims,” said Viccy Baker of Retail Price Watch. “Interestingly, although Shoprite is supposed to be selling to lower-middle income consumers and Checkers to high-end consumers (‘We are chasing the same consumers as Woolworths’), there was less than 50c difference in the price of their baskets.” Makro Checkers Shoprite Spar Pick n Pay Baker noted that Shoprite has subsidized the pricing for many basic foods, including 600g brown bread at R4.99 a loaf, R2 hotdogs and R4.99 hot chips in some stores – which were also mentioned by Engelbrecht, who said that the group was selling ‘sub–R5 deli meals’. However, she said that consumers in the chain’s target market could do with having more nutritious basic foodstuffs such as eggs or frozen chicken, subsidized as well. VAT hike South African consumers are set to feel the pinch in the coming months as a new VAT rate is set to kick in from 1 April. In the latest budget speech for 2018, the finance ministry announced that the 14% VAT would be lifted to 15%, to raise as much as R22 billion to plug a massive hole in the national budget. Meanwhile, the basket of zero-rated items (which are not charged VAT) has not changed, despite calls from political parties and civic groups for the basket to be expanded, so that the country’s most vulnerable are not hit as hard. The VAT hike will not simply impact the shelf price of items but will affect the entire value chain.

You can short on the JSE, will need to use a CFD on a platform like IG markets or GT247 I think.

If that is the case then I cannot fathom what would happen. To me, the only possible outcome I see is private "military style" services being hired to protect the land, basically passive civil war. A different note, without a doubt this will affect food security, is there not some international body that protects countries from themselves who can step in, I mean I hate the US, but I think we can use some democracy in South Africa and I heard the US delivers democracy in 48 freedoms per second.

I wonder if blue is fixing the reseller price for Cell C now that they own it. In other words do they give 1 price for airtime vendors (blue label competitors) and another price for Blue Label (cheaper). Does it show in Blue Label's financials what they pay for Cell C airtime (the profit margins) Sent from my SM-G920F using Tapatalk

If it means the government needs to take over the bond then I suspect banks will push against this dog stupid communist idea. I won't trust SA government to pay bonds if I was a bank. Sent from my SM-G920F using Tapatalk

@Bandit Time for braai Sent from my SM-G920F using Tapatalk

What's everyone doing this weekend? Sent from my SM-G920F using Tapatalk

What will happen is that these greedy self-serving politicians will not go for Touws River, they will go for Camps Bay, Constancia, Plattekloof, Blue Bay etc. This is nothing, but a zim style land grab - yet Ramaposa is the hero... A smart educated thief is a lot more dangerous than a reckless bull like Zuma could ever dream to be.

I am not going to the bank yet. I like this company, hopefully, this is just the beginning.

Land expropriation without compensation is not a done deal. For now, the ball is in the court of Parliament's Constitutional Review Committee, which will consider whether to amend the Constitution to allow expropriation of land without compensation and how it will be done. This, after the National Assembly, adopted EFF leader Julius Malema's motion in this regard on Tuesday. The original motion called for the establishment of an ad hoc committee to review and amend section 25 of the Constitution to make it possible for the state to expropriate land in the public interest, without compensation. The ANC proposed an amendment to the motion, which was adopted, that the Constitutional Review Committee "undertake a process of consultation to determine the modalities of the governing party resolution". The resolution it refers to was taken at the ANC's conference in Johannesburg in December, to allow expropriation of land without compensation, subject to a feasibility study, to ensure that food security and the economy were not threatened. "[The] conference resolved that the ANC should, as a matter of policy, pursue expropriation of land without compensation. This should be pursued without destabilizing the agricultural sector, without endangering food security in our country and without undermining economic growth and job creation," the ANC's conference declaration reads. President Cyril Ramaphosa also said on several occasions that expropriation without compensation will be explored to ensure that it does not undermine economic growth and food security. The Constitutional Review Committee The committee comprises members of the National Assembly and the National Council of Provinces. ANC MPs Lewis Nzimade and Vincent Smith are the co-chairpersons. Among the 22 members of the committee are the ANC's Mathole Motshekga and Francois Beukman (who both served on the ad hoc committees on Nkandla), the DA's James Selfe and Glynnis Breytenbach and the EFF's Floyd Shivambu. This committee deals with proposals to amend the Constitution, which can be submitted by the public. They will have hearings where members of the public, civil society and parties can present their proposals. The National Assembly gave the committee a deadline of 30 August to report back on its work. If the committee decides to indeed amend the Constitution, it will have to draft the amendment. What is to be considered for the amendment? Section 25 of the Constitution deals with property and is often called the "property clause". In its current form, it states that "no law may permit arbitrary deprivation of property" and that "[property] may be expropriated only in terms of law of general application (a) for a public purpose or in the public interest; and (b) subject to compensation, the amount of which and the time and manner of payment of which have either been agreed to by those affected or decided or approved by a court". Section 25 also says the "state must take reasonable legislative and other measures, within its available resources, to foster conditions which enable citizens to gain access to land on an equitable basis". Parties' policy on expropriation Since its inception, the EFF agitated for expropriation without compensation. "The state should, through its legislative capacity transfer all land to the state, which will administer and use the land for sustainable-development purposes. This transfer should happen without compensation and should apply to all South Africans, black and white," reads the EFF's policy on its website. Thus, if the EFF's policy is adopted, all land will belong to the state. After Tuesday's debate on the motion, Malema said this does not mean people will lose their homes, factories or industries. The ANC's policy on what will happen after the land is expropriated without compensation is less clear. Given the caveats that it should not harm economic growth and food security, and Ramaphosa's utterances that it should be used as a way to kick-start an "agricultural revolution", it seems the ANC's policy will not entail expropriating all land and transferring it to the state, but rather focus on specific pieces of land that will be used for land reform projects. Other parties who supported the expropriation without compensation principle are the IFP, UDM, NFP, Agang, AIC, and APC. The DA does not support it, even though it says it "is fully committed to redressing the history of violent land dispossession in South Africa, and the social and economic legacy of this dispossession which still exists in our country today". "The DA will defend the Constitution and show that expropriation without compensation is not the solution to assisting the poor and marginalized in accessing land and economic opportunities," DA MP and spokesperson on rural development and land reform Thandeka Mbabama said in a statement released on Wednesday. "We believe it is possible to achieve the aims of land reform and to do so in a way that truly empowers black people and strengthens the economy. We reject the opportunism of launching an attack on the Constitution to deflect from the failures of the ANC-led government." Other parties opposing expropriation without compensation are Cope, the ACDP and the Freedom Front Plus. How to change the Constitution To amend the Constitution, two-thirds of the National Assembly must vote for a proposed amendment and, in the National Council of Provinces, six of the nine provinces must be for the proposed amendment. This means 267 of the National Assembly's members must vote for the proposed amendment. The ANC currently has 249 MPs and the EFF 25. The EFF has repeatedly promised to vote for an amendment that would allow expropriation without compensation. This means that there will be enough votes to amend the Constitution if all ANC and EFF MPs vote according to party lines. Source: News24

Cape Town - Hawks officers on Wednesday afternoon raided the home of author Jacques Pauw. Jacques Pauw confirmed to News24 that three officers from the Hawks arrived at his home in Riebeek Kasteel, about 80km north-east of Cape Town. "They are from the Hawks' crime against the state unit. They came here with a search warrant and gave me some time to send it to my lawyer first," he said. Pauw said he was cooperating with the officers who had followed procedure. "They said they were looking for secret state security files as part of their investigation." Pauw said there wasn't anything like that lying around in his house. His wife Sam Rogers added: "They are going through our restaurant files and CVs of locals who applied for jobs and old copies of Getaway [the travel magazine]." Pauw’s lawyer Willem de Klerk confirmed to News24 that the Hawks obtained a search and seizure warrant to conduct searches at the author’s home. "I can confirm that there is a legitimate warrant for search and seizure against Pauw. The warrant relates to supposed secret documents in the possession of the author. Pauw is giving his full co-operation to the police." [video=youtube] The case relates to a docket opened by the State Security Agency (SSA) at the Lyttleton police station in Pretoria. Hawks spokesperson Brigadier Hangwani Mulaudzi confirmed the search and seizures being carried out at Pauw's house. "The warrant was granted by a magistrate in Malmesbury in Cape Town. It is a very complicated process and it was only granted to us today," he said. In his book, The President’s Keepers, Pauw revealed the existence of a parallel intelligence network within the SSA. Mulaudzi said the warrant covered any documents and evidence that could assist in the investigations related to the case opened by SSA following the book's publication. "We are working in conjunction with the NPA and it is in terms of violations of the National Strategic Intelligence Act." Source: News24

I'm in 40% (I'm young so higher risk appetite atm.) Sent from my SM-G920F using Tapatalk

I feel the ETF space in SA is getting crowded now - soon we will have what we have in the US. I much prefer we have a couple smart beta products (like 10) and then the companies focus on lowering the fees. We have 64 ETFs on the JSE currently, it's too much.

Investec Emerging Markets Digital Plus The Digital Plus ESP is designed to provide investors with a minimum 35% rand return if the ETF goes up by as little as 0.1% at the end of 3.5-years.

Stanlib is offering three separate IPO's: Stanlib MSCI World Index Feeder ETF This ETF aims to track the MSCI World Index in South African Rands, it invests in the iShares Core MSCI World UCITS ETF. Stanlib Global REIT Index Feeder ETF The ETF aims to track the FTSE EPRA/NAREIT Global REIT Index in South African Rands, it invests in the iShares Global REIT ETF. Stanlib Global Government Bond Index Feeder ETF The ETF aims is to track the FTSE Group-of-7 (G7) Index in South African Rands, it invests in the iShares Global Govt Bond UCITS ETF. You would need to participate in any of the Stanlib IPOs before 00h00 on Monday 5 March 2018.

Ashburton World Government Bond ETF The Ashburton World Government Bond ETF provides investors with cost-efficient exposure to the global bond market by tracking the Citi World Government Bond Index (WGBI). You need to participate in the Ashburton World Government Bond Exchange ETF IPO before 00h00 on Sunday 04 March 2018.