Business

South Africa’s Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan told an investment conference this week government was concerned about the volatility of the rand, which has hit four-year lows against the US dollar because of worries about the impact of strikes on the mining sector.

The country dropped its 2013 growth forecast to 2,7% from 3%, with lower revenue seen leading to a wider budget deficit of 4,6% of GDP for 2013/14. Read more about SA favours growth over investors

Finance Minister Saara Kuugongelwa-Amadhila has been largely praised following her tabling of the national budget last month, especially regarding across-the-board tax reductions introduced. Read more about Motorists to pay carbon emissions tax

From the smallest small and medium enterprise (SME) to the largest corporation, filing serves an important role in the day-to-day functioning of any business. From legal requirements necessitating certain documents to be kept over a stipulated period, to the protection of classified information, the need for effective archiving is gaining ever-more consideration in the national context. Read more about Archiving gains prominence

Reforms embarked on by China this past weekend mark the biggest reduction in ministries since 1998, when then-premier Zhu Rongji oversaw the overhaul of the State Council. Read more about China overhauls ministries to boost efficiency

One in four Germans would be ready to vote in September’s federal election for a party that wants to quit the euro, according to an opinion poll published on Monday that highlights German unease over the costs of the eurozone crisis.

Germany’s mainstream parties remain solidly pro-euro, despite grumbling over bailouts of countries such as Greece.

A German taboo on nationalism, rooted in its atonement for the crimes of the Nazi era, has helped to muffle eurosceptic voices. Read more about One in four Germans would back anti-euro party

Mediclinic Namibia has announced that renovations currently underway at the private hospital are set to amount to a total N$164-million investment in the three local regions it is involved in. Read more about N$164m expansion at Mediclinics

The property industry is starting to move away from the traditionally more in demand up-market, the latest statistics from FNB’s monthly Housing Index shows. Read more about Upmarket housing buys stagnate

The jobless rate in the eurozone's second-largest economy, France, increased by 0,4 percentage points in the third quarter of last year, the country’s statistics institute, Insee, said. Read more about French jobless rate hits 14-year high

The rift between Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe Governor Dr Gideon Gono and Empowerment Minister Saviour Kasukuwere over the “unprocedural” signing of indigenisation deals for foreign mining companies in Zimbabwe is widening.

There have been differences between the two officials over the empowerment policy, with President Robert Mugabe intervening last week by ordering that lower indigenisation thresholds be implemented for the banking sector. Read more about Zim indigenisation row widens

The Keetmanshoop community is bidding farewell to its OK Grocer, but rather than mourn the loss of a retailer, the town is readying itself for the entry of Pick n Pay into its midst. Read more about Keetmanshoop trades OK for Pick n Pay