South Africa’s unemployment rate hit a record high in the first quarter of this year as key sectors including agriculture shed jobs, data showed on Tuesday.

With rumours swirling about potential consolidation in the months ahead, Telkom CEO Sipho Maseko said his company is ready for a wave of mergers and acquisitions – should they happen.

Government is considering selling a green infrastructure bond worth tens of billions of rand as part of its biggest drive ever to kick-start private investment in projects ranging from energy to water reticulation.

Apple on Monday said it will switch to its own chips for its Mac computers, ending a nearly 15-year reliance on Intel to supply processors for its flagship laptops and desktop.

Telkom is looking at ways to generate more value from its mobile tower business, including a potential sale or spin-off, CEO Sipho Maseko said.

President Cyril Ramaphosa has warned of widening job losses as the effects of a shutdown to curb the spread of the coronavirus batter the economy.

President Cyril Ramaphosa announced on Monday that more sections of the Protection of Personal Information Act will come into force on 1 July 2020.

Drivers could be leaving a trove of sensitive data on their old cars by not wiping information held from connecting to a smartphone, according to a survey.

Telkom has suspended its dividend policy for the next three years as it seeks to build its cash position ahead of a planned auction of radio frequency spectrum in South Africa.

The numbers are not that surprising, given that Telkom has said it is decommissioning its copper network countrywide. But the group’s 2020 fixed-line performance still makes for sobering reading.