Ben Kruger, Simpiwe 'Sim' Tshabalala, and Peter Wharton-Hood have been appointed deputy chief executives of the Standard Bank Group. Tshabalala is currently chief executive of Standard Bank of South Africa (SBSA), while Kruger and Wharton-Hood are group chief operating officers. 7 Apr 2009
Consumers can expect some relief as price cuts on basic food items start coming through the supply chain, Shoprite said last week. 7 Apr 2009
BRUSSELS: Retail trade in the 16 eurozone nations fell unexpectedly sharply in February, dropping 0.6% from the level in January, official EU data showed on Monday, 6 April 2009. 7 Apr 2009
Confidence in investment and retail banking fell to a record low in the first quarter as profits contracted in both market segments in line with a slowing economy, the Ernst & Young Financial Services index shows. 7 Apr 2009
The gaming market has been broken for a long time, and the Conficker worm is a reminder that the PC concept is also becoming unmanageable. Developers want one platform to develop to; they don't want three consoles, two portable gaming systems, lots of phones and a PC. Users want something vastly less complex and really would like to go back to a time when they only worried about the price and where the on switch was. 7 Apr 2009
The quality of this year's SA wine grape harvest is outstanding, Erhard Wolf, head of Distell's grape and wine buying team, said on Monday, 6 April 2009. 6 Apr 2009
Nielsen IAG's latest survey has found that consumer confidence in financial institutions is heavily influenced by the advertising drives implemented by the companies. 6 Apr 2009
Supreme Flour, produced by Foodcorp's Ruto Mills division, has been launched as a replacement for the Ouma flour brand. 6 Apr 2009
The establishment of the Gauteng Liquor Agency to replace of the Gauteng Liquor Board will reduce the huge backlog of licence applications, according to agency CEO Keith Khoza. 6 Apr 2009
South African telecommunications company Vodacom has announced the first phase of the restructuring of its range of broadband and connectivity services which will provide a greater range of options and benefits to its customers. 6 Apr 2009
Goodbye, numeric cellphone keypads. You're going the way of the rotary dial. Touchscreens and QWERTY keyboards will take over from here, thank you. 6 Apr 2009
Navigation solutions provider, TomTom, has launched an online map shop on its website. 6 Apr 2009
Ratings agency Fitch has warned that motor businesses, especially car dealerships, could serve as a “cash drain” on parent companies such as Bidvest and Barloworld in the face of the global economic downturn. 6 Apr 2009
A house in Cyrildene Johannesburg, that was used to manufacture and copy DVDs and CDs in a large counterfeiting operation was forfeited to the state last week, the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) announced on Friday, 3 April 2009. 6 Apr 2009
Engen has assured that fuel deliveries will continue with minimal disruption during South African Transport and Allied Workers Union strike (SATAWU), which is expected to go ahead tomorrow, 7 April 2009, if a dispute with employers is not resolved. 6 Apr 2009
Exhibitions could be a useful way of increasing sales as consumers seek value for money in a blighted economic climate. 6 Apr 2009
While the South African environment is set to benefit from new tariffs designed to stimulate renewable energy development, consumers will feel the pressure of higher prices. 3 Apr 2009
A partial recovery in some industrial commodities has rekindled investor interest in these stocks in recent weeks. Sugar, one of the so-called “soft commodities”, has done considerably better. 3 Apr 2009
Even as the recession grinds on, the gaming industry continues to draw in consumers' entertainment dollars. Nintendo hit a console shipping milestone 50 million Wii units last week, while retailer GameStop announced a monster of a sales quarter. 3 Apr 2009
The traditional sales pressures of lengthening sales cycles and low quota achievement have only been exacerbated by the recent economic downturn. Many businesses have been forced to cut costs, eliminate waste and often freeze spending. The few organisations that might be looking to spend are increasingly engaging in intense due diligence through various online sources, such as consumer-generated content forums and other third-party information providers, to inform their purchasing decisions. 3 Apr 2009
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