South Africa Car Hire

Cape Town - A well-known gymnasium group will have to cough up after a British security guard was injured on an exercise machine in its branch in Long Street, Cape Town.

Virgin Active South Africa this week made a settlement in the local supreme court with Edward Gerhard Huss in consideration of his claim of more than R600 000.

The court will decide on the actual amount for damages at a later date. In terms of the settlement, which was made an order of the court, Virgin Active accepts responsibility for the incident that took place on December 26 2001.

Virgin Active will be responsible for Huss's medical expenses, loss of income, general damages, travelling expenses, and legal costs.

Huss, previously a body builder, said he visited the Long Street gymnasium that day as he had received a complimentary voucher from the group's sales representatives in Johannesburg.

He never signed any documents indemnifying Virgin Active against any claims and saw no warning notices there.

Huss completed his first set of exercises on the rowing machine and as he started his second set, the cable of the machine broke. He fell backwards, hitting the gymnasium floor with the back of his head.

Huss alleged that Virgin Active, as owner of the gymnasium, had a responsibility towards him and other clients to ensure their safety.

According to him, Virgin Active was negligent in not ensuring that its equipment was in good repair, properly maintained or safe.

Huss sustained serious injuries to his head, neck and spine. He experienced severe pain, fainting spells, headaches, trauma and emotional shock after the incident.

According to a court deposition, he was hospitalised and had to received physiotherapy after the incident, was partly disabled for 17 weeks after the incident and had to walk with a crutch.

He was unable to work during this period.

Huss instituted a damages claim amounting to R639 374.71.

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Bloemfontein - Zimbabwe's cricket team should not expect any mercy from their South African opponents during the one-day series that starts at Goodyear Park here on Friday.

Caretaker captain Jacques Kallis says the Proteas will play as hard against Zimbabwe as they would against Australia.

Kallis sees the three-match series as the ideal start to a season that will end with the World Cup tournament in the West Indies.

"This series is especially valuable for the players who have not been in action for a while," said Kallis. "This is a good way for them to get back into things."

Kallis, who himself has recovered from an elbow injury, confirmed that everything the Proteas did from now on would be aimed at the World Cup tournament.

The veteran, standing in as captain for the injured Graeme Smith, has also had a bout of 'flu and was one of three players who did not take part in the team's fitness tests at the University of the Free State on Wednesday.

Kallis said he had just about shaken off a cold and that the elbow injury that had kept him out of the game was not troubling him much any more.

Kallis and Dippenaar separated?

"I have hit a few balls that were thrown to me. The high-intensity net practices during the next few days will be the real test. I believe I'll be ready," he said.

Kallis and Boeta Dippenaar, both regarded as consistent anchor batsmen in one-day cricket, are - depending on batting conditions - unlikely to play in the same SA teams in future.

Asked whether he planned to try batting with more fluency in future, Kallis said it was something that would be determined by the situation at the time.

Shaun Pollock, who had a sore calf, and AB de Villiers were the others who missed the fitness tests.

Pollock was injured in a Twenty20 match for the Dolphins against a Pietermaritzburg XI. De Villiers was cut on the foot while he was getting out of a dam last Saturday.

Wicketkeeper Mark Boucher did the best in the demanding bleep tests, beating the super fit Makhaya Ntini.

Jonty shows the way

Newcomer Alviro Petersen did best in the 10m sprints, clocking 1.8 seconds.

Boucher and André Nel also did well in the sprints and the fielding coach, 37-year-old Jonty Rhodes, showed some players how it should be done.

Smith, still covering from ankle surgery, trained away from the rest of the team, watched by the team's physiotherapist, Shane Jabaar.

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Pretoria - Twenty schoolgirls had to be saved by emergency workers on Wednesday morning after an endurance-camp river trip went wrong and they went missing for nearly a night.

The Grade 10 pupils of Hatfield Christian School were found shortly after 03:30 in thick bush along the Wilge River in Ezemvelo nature reserve in Bronkhorstspruit, east of Pretoria.

The girls accompanied by three teachers and an instructor, took to the river in kayaks on Tuesday about 04:30.

Imbila Edu-Adventures director Philip Reinecke, who arranged the camp, said the group should have reported at a low-water bridge in the reserve by 16:00.

"But, they never arrived and at 19:00 we got an SMS from the instructor, Pastor Jimmy Venter," said Reinecke.

Venter had had to climb high up on a hill to get cellphone reception to call for help.

"We decided to search for the group and called Bronkhorstspruit police station about 20:30," said Reinecke.

Members of the town's emergency services, the Johannesburg Off-road Rescue Unit and the Johannesburg police's water wing were also involved in searching for the teenagers.

Saw the light

After scores of rescue workers had combed the 6 000ha reserve for hours, Venter's calls for help and weak torchlight were seen about 03:00 behind thick reeds near the low-water bridge.

Rescue workers lifted him out of his kayak and treated him at the river, and then about half an hour later - and 4km further downriver - the rest of the group was found.

School spokesperson Pierre le Roux said the girls had become too exhausted to paddle further on Tuesday afternoon.

"After that, the light was bad and they couldn't go further," he said.

Inspector Katlego Mogale of the police said one of the girls had hurt her back when she slipped on stones and fell.

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Washington - The Bush administration, which once derided the United Nations as an "irrelevant debating society", has been obliged by multiple and escalating foreign policy crises to again work through the world body.

But the relationship on the eve of this year's UN General Assembly (UNGA) meeting remains a wary one, with senior administration officials still highly sceptical that Washington can achieve its aims via the multilateral forum, analysts say.

Secretary of state Condoleezza Rice's packed agenda when the General Assembly opens next week in New York is an indication of the greater US readiness to tackle its thornier diplomatic problems in tandem with allies on the UN security council.

Iran, Darfur

High on her to-do list will be a US-driven effort to impose sanctions on Iran for its refusal to comply with UN resolutions requiring the suspension of a uranium enrichment programme which Washington believes is a cover for development of nuclear weapons.

Rice will also be pressing for implementation of a security council resolution to put peacekeepers in Sudan's war-torn Darfur region, despite opposition to the deployment from the Khartoum government.

Other issues that Washington has chosen to address through the security council include following through with the ceasefire in Lebanon, confronting North Korea's nuclear programme and pressing for democratic change in Myanmar.

UN refused to back Iraq war

It's a far cry from the days when President George W Bush heaped scorn on the UN for refusing to back the US-led invasion of Iraq in March 2003.

Speaking in February of that year, Bush raised the spectre of the world body fading "into history as an ineffective, irrelevant, debating society".

That the subsequent war in Iraq has gone so wrong is widely seen as the impetus for Bush's new willingness to try the UN path.

US 'needs security council' to deal with crises

"Iraq may be the worst foreign policy disaster the US has ever made, and part of that was a complete thumbing of their nose at the UN, their go-it-alone policy," said Roberta Cohen, a former UN and US state department official now working with the Brookings Institution in Washington.

"They now realise that to deal with the various crises, the Lebanon-Israel conflict, Iran, Dafur and Sudan, they need the security council," she said, describing the new US approach as one of "cautious collaboration".

"They can't go it alone - they don't have the authority, they don't have the power and they don't even have the capacity," she said.

Rice key in policy shift

Rice, Bush's former national security advisor who took over at the state department in January 2005, is seen as a key player in the policy shift.

A pragmatist close to Bush, Rice has had more success than her predecessor, Colin Powell, in promoting diplomacy over the unilateralism favoured by administration hawks like vice president Dick Cheney and defence secretary Donald Rumsfeld.

"Rice realises that if she wants to maintain practical working relationships with the countries that can help her get things done, one of the places she has to go to do that is in UNGA," said Esther Brimmer, a former state department official and expert on the United Nations.

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Johannesburg - The Employment Equity Commission (EEC) insists that it correctly identified companies it says have failed to comply with employment equity reporting procedures and warns that evaders will be charged with fraud.

"We stand by what we are saying, what we reported is 100% accurate," said EEC chairperson Jimmy Manyi on Wednesday.

"As the committee that advises the minister on employment equity matters, we do not apologise for the advice we gave him and we stand by it.

"In fact, there are tougher measures to come. We have discovered that many companies are flouting the law by reporting in a manner that tries to circumvent the law."

He warned that those who did not comply could face charges of fraud.

Companies produced proof of compliance

On Monday, Labour Minister Membathisi Mdladlana said he had a list of companies that were not complying with equity legislation by failing to submit the required documentation.

The department had a list of 1 000 companies, including 13 listed on the JSE, which it said had not submitted their equity reports last year.

On Wednesday, Business Day reported that several of the large companies accused of non-compliance produced proof that they had complied and that the department had acknowledged receipt of their reports.

These included the JSE-listed African Bank, Ceramic Industries, Netcare, Tongaat-Hulett, Ellerine Holdings and Gold Fields.

Companies filed documents under different names

Manyi said some companies had apparently filed documents under different names.

He said there were two main problems - one with companies that were listed on the JSE under one name, but submitted reports under a different one, and another with companies that split themselves up into smaller entities of fewer than 150 employees to avoid the necessity of complying.

"In the database of the department of labour we have Ceramic Industries... we then find that in 2005 there is no report from Ceramic Industries."

He said the company reported under that name in 2004 then reported as National Ceramic Industries without informing the Employment Equity Registry.

"We wrote to these companies saying, please clarify," said Manyi.

"We wrote to 1 296 companies and a whole lot of them responded. These ones did not respond."

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Port Elizabeth - Former Springbok captain Corné Krige has added his voice to the choir calling for Western Province flanker Luke Watson to be included in the South African rugby team.

"Just because the Springboks have won their last two Test matches does not mean our problems have been solved," Krige said here on Wednesday.

He attended the launch of the Nelson Mandela Bay Sevens tournament to be held at Grey High School in December.

"I believe one must have an open-side flanker in your team and I think Watson is the right man for this position (for the Springboks)," Krige said.

"He has a major influence on just about every match he plays in.

"At this stage, he also seems to be a good leader, but we'll have to see how he handles greater pressure as captain."

The former Springbok flanker said Watson, who had left Port Elizabeth to play big-time rugby, was in a class of his own as open-side flanker in South Africa.

"We have incredible talent among the loose forwards, but we need more open-side flankers.

'Must hone open-side flankers'

"Roland Bernard of the Lions is starting to play well again. I rate him rather highly.

"But, every union must develop and hone open-side flankers if we don't want to come short against other international teams."

Krige added that he had been impressed by the performances of young Pierre Spies.

"He is big, strong and fast and looks a fantastic player, but I feel he should be used as a ball carrier because that is his natural game.

"The same goes for Joe van Niekerk. One should not try to turn him into a fetcher if he is a ball carrier."

Krige said he would pick Juan Smith to partner Spies and Watson in the Springbok team. "I have a lot of respect for Smith. He is a fine player and cannot be left out.

"Maybe he should be at No 8, but Spies could also be better at eighthman.

Must complement each other

"However, those three are my loose-forward trio," said Krige.

He added that it was not always best for a team to have the three best loose forwards available, but that it was better to select the three who complemented each other best.

Krige also said Watson had not been at his best in Western Province's match against the Cheetahs.

Watson will lead his team against the Falcons at Newlands on Saturday.

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Johannesburg, South Africa
Bovine tuberculosis, an infectious disease mostly confined to cattle but now threatening wildlife around the world, is spreading among buffalo in South Africa's Kruger National Park, an official said on Wednesday.

Tests confirm more of the famed park's estimated 32 000 buffalo have contracted the chronic wasting disease. Other animals, including lions, leopards and hyenas, may also be infected through consumption of infected prey.

"It has increased and we have picked up signs of the disease in the north [part of the park]," said Raymond Travers, spokesperson for Kruger, one of the continent's premier wildlife reserves.

Bovine TB spreads mainly through respiratory secretions and is marked by sharp weight loss and lesions in the lymph nodes and lungs. With no efficient way to treat the disease, farmers are usually forced to quarantine or cull infected livestock.

Protecting deer, bison and other free-range animals from the disease has become a priority in the United States, Canada and elsewhere due to fears that the infection could become uncontrollable, decimating livestock and wildlife alike.

Travers, however, said park officials were not seeing any indications of a decline in Kruger's buffalo population from the disease, which often takes years to kill infected animals.

Believed to have entered the southern part of the park decades ago through contact with infected cattle, bovine TB has since spread through the nearly two million-hectare reserve, 330km north-east of Johannesburg.

Although humans can contract the disease -- normally by eating contaminated dairy products or meat -- Travers said there was no realistic threat to the 1,2-million people who visit the park annually.

Founded in 1898, Kruger is the jewel in the crown of South Africa's system of national parks and home to 147 kinds of wild mammal, including the so-called "Big 5" -- lion, leopard, rhino, buffalo and elephant. - Reuters



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Singapore - Oil prices have fallen as much as $16 from their peaks, their steepest reversal in 16 years, in a correction that traders say may be harder to shake off than past setbacks over the market's four-year rally.
In real terms Brent has fallen $16.02 since it hit a high of $78.65 on August 8 - its biggest decline from peak to trough since prices fell just ahead of the first Gulf War in late 1990.

Brent is down more than 20% from its peak, meeting the technical criteria for the start of a bear market.

US crude has dropped nearly $15 to hit a near six-month low of $63.53 a barrel on Wednesday, a fall only a hair smaller than those in August-November 2005 and October-December 2004.

In those cases, oil recovered to make new highs within five and eight months, respectively.

Lasting setback?

In percentage terms there have been bigger stumbles on oil's recent ascent, propelled steadily higher since 2002 by the war in Iraq, soaring Chinese demand, constrained oilfield and refinery production, devastating US Gulf Coast hurricanes, and most recently fears of a disruption to Iran's exports.

But some say this setback may prove more lasting.

"Even though we've retraced certain percentages similar to this, it definitely seems that the market is different now," says New York-based ABN AMRO broker John Brady.

"Other times I saw (the corrections) leading to great buy opportunities, but I don't necessarily think that this time."

Technical analysts who study past price action for future direction, say the drop through the 200-day moving average last week and this week's fall below a three-year trend line - intact since mid-2003 - both send worrying signals.

Limits on investor influx

They say that the global environment is different than two or three years ago, when central banks were aiding liquidity with low interest rates and investors were seeking alternatives to sluggish equity and fixed-income markets.

Tighter conditions from Japan to the US may now limit the kind of investor influx that helped oil get back on track in each of the market's past corrections, while economic growth appears to be slowing, not accelerating.

Lastly the market has been in a contango structure for nearly two years, forcing the growing number of passive long-only investors to pay up each time they roll their positions forward - a potential deterrent for investing more.

While many analysts say the worst may not be over yet in the latest shake-out, most also agree that there remains scope for another attempt at surpassing the previous summit.

"If the fall is fast enough and hard enough, then there's momentum selling on the other side - that can have a sustained influence on prices, weeks or months," says Tobin Gorey, commodities strategist at the Commonwealth Bank of Australia.

"I do think this dip could well outdo those last two falls, but I don't think it destroys the story."

Past moves

Earlier this year, US crude fell 16.5% from January 23 to February 16 as the impact of new fund money faded and US supplies looked set to last out the winter.

Prices recouped their losses within two months as the Iran issue hotted up, Nigerian outages wore on and the summer loomed.

Previous corrections have taken much longer to fix.

Just as the rally got underway in 2003, oil prices slumped 31% from $39.99 a barrel (February 27) - the highest since the first Gulf War of 1990 - after the US invasion of Iraq appeared likely to be quick and spare harm to oilfields.

US prices took 14 months to reach a new high of $40, helped along by the dawning realisation that rapid economic growth in China was boosting oil demand far faster than expected, straining the world's producers and refiners.

Prices again spiralled lower after hitting $55.67 a barrel on October 25 2004, a peak helped by Hurricane Ivan, embarking on a 27.7% slump later linked to position unwinding as China Aviation Oil admitted to $550m in trading losses.

Within five months of the December 30 low at $40.25, however, they had risen back to record highs, thanks in part to Saudi supply cuts, a measure that oil traders now expect to come centre stage.

A year ago, prices soared to $70.85 a barrel as Hurricane Katrina smashed into the US Gulf Coast. But within three months, they had fallen by $15.40 a barrel as traders shifted focus to an anticipated drop to demand due to higher prices and a relatively mild winter across the United States.


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Johannesburg - The fact that SA families now need to earn a monthly household income of R29 021 to be able to afford the average priced, mid-sized home clearly illustrates how much less affordable South Africa's residential property market has become over the past few years.

The gross monthly qualifying income to afford the average priced home is set to rise even further over the next few months on the back of possible further interest rate hikes.

Three years ago SA households needed a monthly income of roughly R10k/month or less to qualify for a 100% mortgage to buy the average priced home. That is despite interest rates being 3.5% higher at the time than the current prime rate of 11.5%.

These affordability calculations from Absa are based on the bank's latest house price index that puts average house prices at R816k in August (up 13.6% y-o-y).

Expensive to buy property

Absa's affordability figures assume that the house is financed with a 100% bond over 20 years at the current prime rate of 11.5% and that homebuyers are allowed to borrow an amount where monthly repayments will not exceed 30% of gross monthly income.

That translates into a monthly bond repayment of R8 706 on a R816 401 mortgage loan, about 50% more than the monthly bond repayment that buyers had to pay in August 2003 on the average, mid-sized house that was then priced at R442.5k. The repayment on a bond of R442.5k at the then prime rate of 15% was R5 827 per month.

Absa senior economist Jacques du Toit says although house price growth continues to slow, affordability calculations confirm that the rapid rise in house prices over the past few years have made it increasingly expensive to buy property in SA.

Du Toit expects at least another two half percentage point rises by December. But he says further rate hikes in the first half of 2007 cannot be ruled out as the SA Reserve Bank's Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) is expected to continue stepping up rates until the effect of higher rates is visible in the economy.

Demand fro houses drop

Meanwhile, Standard Bank economist Elna Moolman says in her latest property overview that the onslaught on SA consumers' finances from record-high petrol prices, soaring food prices and rising interest rates is no doubt constraining households' ability to pay increasingly high prices for houses.

Moolman says this will continue to lead to softer housing demand that should see house price growth slow to very low, single-digit territory by year-end.


News source: www.news24.co.za

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Audi South Africa has launched its much-vaunted Q7 4x4 onto the local market - but at premium pricing over its VW stablemate, the Volkswagen Touareg.

Two versions of the Q7 are on offer - a 3-litre V6 turbo-diesel, and a 4.2 litre direct injection petrol V8, and prices are R520 000 and R595 000 respectively. Prices include a 5-year or 100 000 km Freeway plan

Click here for driving impressions.

Unlike the VW sibling, the Audi offers the option of either a five, six or seven seater interior and new-generation off-road ESP.

But there's no low-range transfer 'box. In Audi's view, four-wheel drive will provide enough traction in adverse conditions. The Q7 therefore is a tarmac based and biased vehicle.

As standard, the Q7 3.0 TDI offers 18-inch wheels while for the 4.2 FSI V8, 19-inch wheels and tyres are fitted. A full selection of wheels up to 21 inches are available at extra cost.

With a displacement of 4 163 cm3 the V8 is a close relative of the engine used in the new Audi RS 4.

In the Audi Q7, in line with the character of an SUV, it develops 257 kW at 6 800 r/min. But its torque curve is even beefier than in the RS 4: it achieves 440 Nm from 3 500 r/min - 85% of which is available from as low as 2 000 r/min.

This gives a zero to 100 km/h time of 7.4 seconds and top speed of 244 km/h. Versions with the extra-cost adaptive air suspension, by virtue of the lowered body and less aerodynamic drag, can achieve a further 4 km/h.

Fuel consumption

Claimed combined fuel consumption amounts to 13.6 litres/100 km.

The 3.0 TDI produces 171 kW and 500 Nm, with peak torque available from as low as 1 750 r/min.

This translates to a 0 - 100 km/h time of 9.1 seconds and top speeds of 210 km/h and 216 km/h with adaptive air suspension.

Like the RS 4, S4, S6 and the S8, the Audi Q7 features the latest-generation self-locking centre differential. It has an asymmetric/dynamic torque split of 40: 60 between front and rear
wheels.

In particular, in off-road situations or if the prevailing road conditions change, the differential can direct up to 65% of the power to the front or up to 85%.

If a wheel at one axle starts to spin, the electronic different lock EDL takes control by means of
appropriate brake intervention.

As standard the Q7 comes with a conventional steel-spring suspension and hydraulic twin-tube shock absorber system. Ground clearance here is around 205 mm.


Adaptive air suspension is available as an option with an electronically controlled damping system.


Three suspension modes

For normal driving, a choice of three different characteristics can be selected via the Multi Media Interface (MMI) operating system, ranging from very sporty to comfortable, namely Dynamic, Automatic and Comfort.

With optional adaptive air suspension ground clearance is variable, starting at 180 mm and extending to 240 mm in lift mode. The off-road mode gives 205 mm ground clearance.

Finally, two functions round off the range of options: via a button in the luggage compartment the driver can lower the loading lip by 71 mm.

The new generation electronic stability programme (ESP) has new features such as an off-road mode that can be activated by a switch.

In this mode the system tolerates a certain amount of slip when braking
or accelerating, which can often be of help on loose surfaces. For downhill driving there is a special assist function.

In addition a rollover stability programme intervenes in the event of critical driving situations that might cause the vehicle to overturn.

A number of innovative driver assistance systems, introduced for the first time in standard production, are available as options.

Lane-change radar

These include Audi side assist with radar technology for warning when changing lanes, the Audi parking system advanced with optical and acoustic guidance and rear-view camera and the latest-generation Audi radar-assisted cruise control with braking guard, which automatically decelerates the Audi Q7 and brings it to a standstill if required when gaining on a vehicle in front.

The standard Audi Q7 will leave the assembly line as a 5-seater.

In this case the seat bench in the second row is divided 60:40; as an option both elements can be moved back by 100 mm to give passengers more legroom. For even greater seating comfort, all backrests in the second row of seats can be tilted by 10 degrees.

The rear seat split is 40:20 40 and an armrest with pop-up cup holders is incorporated in the centre section. This element can be folded down completely to create a through-loading width of 30 cm.

If all three backrests are folded down - it is not necessary to remove the head restraints- a flat loading area is created, flush with the level of the luggage compartment.

The 7-seat version has two seats in the third row suitable for people of up to 1.6 metres tall. These seats can be folded flat on the loading floor if necessary.

As a 5-seater the Audi Q7 has a standard luggage area of 775 litres. Even if all three seat rows are used, a very respectable luggage capacity of 330 litres remains.


The basic interior architecture is shared with the Audi A6 and A8 saloons.

There is no handbrake, a foot-operated parking brake being fitted instead. As an option - and standard on the Audi Q7 4.2 FSI - the tailgate can be opened electrically.


News source: www.news24.co.za

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Times in the real estate industry are changing fast - a fact that has been commented on in the media a lot lately. These changes are occurring on both a local and international scale, and realtors need to be prepared and change tactics in order to survive. International real estate expert Duncan Gray gives his views on the changing market conditions with reference to similar patterns in the international market

Globally, the reason for the residential property boom can be attributed to the stock market slump in 2000, and the move investors made to other options with bigger and better returns. Residential property was the natural progression in the investor market and some countries like the UK and Australia experienced a sharp rise in property values while others took a little longer to get started such as the US, France and South Africa.

Even though initially the property boom in South Africa was a bit behind in comparison to the rest of the world, the country has since outperformed others. In fact, South African house prices have recorded one of the highest growth rates globally since 1997.

The natural cooling off of the market has definitely begun, but South Africa is not the only country that is experiencing a slow down. There has been a dramatic decline in the international market growth, especially in those countries that had a good head start on the international boom like the UK and Australia. But even so, it seems as if the markets are cooling down at a measured pace, which could indicate that the local property market is unlikely to experience a sudden decline in growth or prices in the near future.

Aside from the international slow down, factors like over pricing and interest rate hikes have been added to the mix locally.

The latest Absa house price index, published on 5 September 2006, indicates on a month-on-month basis, house prices declined by 0,1% in real terms in July this year (+0,2% in June), which was the first real month-on-month price decline since April 2002 when it was -0,5%.

The report also notes that due to the inflationary pressures present in the economy, combined with large current account deficits and continued strong growth in domestic credit extension on the back of sustained high levels of consumer demand, the South African Reserve Bank's Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) is expected to hike interest rates further towards the end of the year.

They are looking at a 50 basis point increase in rates for October, and perhaps an even larger than 50 basis point hike at the MPC meeting next month. Then there is another increase of 50 basis points forecast for December, which Absa believes will bring prime and variable mortgage interest rates to at least 12,5% by year-end. They further note that the MPC is expected to continue hiking rates in a stepped way until the effect of the higher interest rates is visible in the economy. This implies that interest rate hikes could continue into the first half of 2007.

It is expected that the house price growth will continue its downward spiral for the rest of this year, with a growth of 12%-13% for the year compared to the 22% growth recorded for 2005. The expectation is for nominal year-on-year house price growth to be in single digits by the end of this year.

With more interest rate hikes predicted for the future, the market will become even more competitive than ever before and it is now really a case of "survival of the fittest".

There is no doubt that the jobs of estate agents have now become that much harder, and with the constantly changing market conditions, this is set to continue. The changing market has naturally brought about a shift in the way that estate agents conduct their day to day business. It can be seen in the fact that many smaller independent real estate agencies are joining forces with bigger brands in order to capitalise on the tools that these brands provide such as marketing initiatives.

However, the bigger brands are only prepared to take on agents that are top performers, because those who don't perform will not be able to survive in these changing market conditions. Here the low level barriers to entry for estate agents needs to be addressed more so than ever before, to ensure that the agents out there are all top class professionals and can adequately survive in a very competitive industry.

But the consumers' perception about the market also needs to shift. Agents need to educate their clients on the changes taking place in the market to avoid issues like over pricing, which ultimately leads to a feeling of dissatisfaction on both sides. Sellers often feel that the agents are not doing their job properly, which in some instances may be the case. But they need to remember, the value of any property is only what a buyer is prepared to pay, and that if a home is over priced, any estate agent, no matter how experienced and good at their job, will not be able to sell the property and it will end up sitting on the market for an extended period of time.

That said however, it should be noted that demand for residential property in the country remains. There are many properties that are still selling for record prices, and developments that are selling out in record time. When driving around any area throughout the country, the amount of development being undertaken bears testimony to the continuing demand for good quality residential property. The future still looks bright, but the market is ultra-competitive, and it is ultimately only the best who will survive.


News source: www.news24.co.za

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Elise Tempelhoffz, Beeld

Pretoria - The "new"' visitors to the Kruger National Park prefer to walk around with tour guides in the reserve or to drive around with them.

Kruger Park spokesperson Raymond Travers said on Monday: "The game reserve definitely will not be turned into a casino or a holiday resort."

Travers was commenting on the difference between traditional visitors, who drive themselves around and sit around campfires at night, and "new" ones, who want to be "entertained".

The "new" visitors are mainly members of the black upper-middle class who prefer four-star accommodation.

Plan open for comment

A newly proposed management plan for the Kruger Park, on which the public can now comment, states that the game reserve will have to adapt its infrastructure to provide for the needs of the "new" visitors who do not necessarily want to stay in self-catering units.

But, some say if visitors want to live in the lap of luxury, they are at the wrong place because the game reserve will lose its magic if the management wants to introduce "luxury" there.

The proposed plan states that the game reserve actually wants to restore its tranquillity by scaling down its day visitors so that there will be less traffic on the roads.

Altogether, about 70% of the Kruger Park's visitors come only for the day.


News source: www.news24.co.za

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Just remember, you still need to rent a vehicle to get there. And don't forget - drive very carefully on gravel roads
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Erika Gibson, Beeld

Pretoria - A South African pilot and his passenger recently had to land on a tarred road in Mozambique to avoid crashing into the sea when their plane broke down because of an oil-pressure problem.

They were arrested and had to explain the reason for their illegal landing on the road to a judge in a court in Inhassoro before they were acquitted.

Aircraft salesman Etienne Oosthuizen of Nelspruit denied rumours on Monday that they were involved in smuggling drugs or other illegal products.

Foreign affairs spokesperson Ronnie Mamoepa said the South African embassy in Maputo reported the incident to the department only on Friday, presumably after a version had appeared in the local press.

In the latest rumours, the two were called Benjamin Thuiso and Gerard van Aarde.

Oosthuizen's second name is Benjamin and his passenger was Jason van Aarde.

Flight and route cleared

Oosthuizen's landed his single-engined Kitfox on the tarred road between Vilanculos and Inhassoro, north of Maputo, about three weeks ago.

He said: "We were en route to the islands near Vilanculos. Our flight plan and route had been handed in and cleared, and the customs officers at Vilanculos had cleared us.

"Just before we were to have crossed the sea to the islands, the plane lost oil pressure.

"I landed on the road and later found the problem was a loose cable.

"But, the police arrived and took us to the police station.

"We stayed overnight in the house of the friendly police chief whose wife made food for us.

"We had to go to court because the case had been logged.

"The judge listened to us and acquitted us.

"I haven't the foggiest idea where the rumours about drugs have come from now?"

Mamoepa said the embassy staff in Maputo were finding out the facts and his department would comment later.

News source: www.news24.co.za

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We check the oil on all rental vehicles. They should learn from us
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Eduan Roos , Beeld

Johannesburg - If Corné Krige has any say in the matter, the Springboks who attended the infamous Kamp Staaldraad three years ago will not be seen in their birthday suits in South African homes.

The former captain of the South African rugby team gave this assurance on Monday after some players had obtained an urgent court order to stop, temporarily, distribution of a DVD recording of the camp.

Krige said many Springboks, including Richard Bands, Victor Matfield, Werner Greeff and Schalk Burger, agreed that distribution of footage of Kamp Staaldraad should be prevented.

Rapport reported at the weekend that former police special task force members Adriaan Heijns and Jan Steyn, who were in charge of the training camp, had compiled a DVD named Kamp Staaldraad: The Real Story. It was due to be released on Monday.

Heijns and Steyn, whose security company's services were terminated by SA Rugby soon after the debacle, told the newspaper they had been forced to make the DVD as a result of Krige's recently published autobiography, which contained revelations about Kamp Staaldraad.

Hoping it will be destroyed

After reading the article, Krige and other players "acted immediately" to obtain, "with the aid of high-profile people", the court order on Sunday night. Krige would not say who the people were.

"All the players that could be contacted agreed that we would not allow our naked bodies to be seen in every second guy's lounge," Krige said.

"The idea of the court order is to first stop the release of the DVD.

"Then, we hope to ensure that this ugly material will not be seen again. It should be taken out of the wrong hands and, we hope, destroyed."

Idea was to unite players

Krige also said "the whole group of players" who had been at the camp shortly before the 2003 World Cup tournament would support further legal action.

"I read about it (the DVD) and then contacted some of the players.

"The idea of the camp was to unite the players and prepare them for the World Cup tournament. But, the whole matter was settled a long time ago."

News source: www.news24.co.za

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Maybe they should hire a car and drive over all the DVD's. They don't have to dress up
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Jean-Louis Santini

Houston - The space shuttle Atlantis was in top physical shape and with no apparent exterior damage, Nasa officials said on Sunday, one day after a flawless launch that marked the US space agency's first construction mission since the 2003 Columbia disaster.

Atlantis, carrying a six-member crew, lifted off from Cape Canaveral, Florida, on Saturday.

"I have not seen a single problem with the vehicle, and the crew is ahead of schedule," said shuttle flight director Paul Dye, speaking after astronauts reported finding no damage to the craft's heat shields from debris.

"So far, everything has gone exactly according to plan," Dye told reporters at the Mission Control Centre at the Johnson Space Centre in Houston.

The astronauts used the orbiter boom sensor system, attached to the end of the shuttle's robot arm, to closely inspect the wing leading edges and the nose cap, Nasa said.

Wayne Hale, Nasa space shuttle programme manager, said earlier that high definition television footage of the lift-off showed several pieces of debris - apparently foam and ice - breaking off and possibly impacting the orbiter.

Foam shed during launch caused the 2003 space shuttle Columbia disaster. Columbia disintegrated upon re-entry into the Earth's atmosphere because a piece of loose foam insulation had pierced the shuttle's protective heat shield during take-off.

The two shuttle flights conducted since then were focused on correcting the problem and improving flight safety. After Discovery returned in July from its latest mission, Nasa declared it was ready to resume construction of the ISS.

Atlantis was supposed to launch on August 27, but the mission was postponed five times due to a lightning strike, a looming tropical storm and technical glitches.

National Aeronautics and Space Administration officials said the 11-day mission to boost power on the ISS entails the most complex work ever undertaken at the nearly eight-year-old, half-finished orbiting laboratory.

Completing the space station is central to US ambitions to fly humans to Mars.

The shuttle is scheduled to dock with the ISS at 10:46 GMT on Monday.

The Atlantis crew began their first full day in space at 05:15 GMT on Sunday with a wake-up call from the Mission Control Centre.

Nasa plans 15 more shuttle trips to complete the orbiting laboratory by 2010, when the three-shuttle fleet is to be retired.


News source: www.news24.co.za

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Johannesburg - Two South African pilots are being held in Mozambique on suspicion of drug trafficking, reported SABC radio on Sunday.

The two were identified as Benjamin Thuiso and Gerard van Aarde.

The plane - a single-engined aircraft - landed on the country's main north-south highway between the districts of Vilankulo and Inhassoro.

It's alleged the plane was waiting to pick up a cargo believed to be illegal drugs.

The pilots are being held at the Vilankulo district prison.

News source: www.news24.co.za

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They booked cars from us, but they were no-shows.
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Lucia Swart and Sapa , Beeld

Johannesburg - A 16-year-old East Rand boy, who doesn't have even a learner's licence, has been caught riding a Suzuki motorcycle at 194km/h on the N3 highway.

He is due to appear soon in Boksburg magistrate's court.

Kobeli Mokheseng of Ekurhuleni metro police said: "It's still unclear why he was travelling at such a speed."

Even if the boy had a licence, it would have been valid only for a 125cc motorbike, which normally can't reach such speeds.

The boy was not the only one caught speeding at the weekend - 16 others were also caught in Operation Velocity.

Mokheseng said 12 had been arrested on Friday: "They were travelling between 122km/h and 169km/h in a 60km/h zone."

Five others, excluding the boy, were arrested on the N3.

They were travelling between 181km/h and 196km/h in a 120km/h zone.


News source: www.news24.co.za

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He would be in bigger trouble if he did that in a rental car
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Pretoria - An English-speaking person's loathing of Afrikaans caused an employer to warn two of the co-workers not to speak Afrikaans again.

The pair, members of Solidarity trade union, work for Chrome International SA in Newcastle.

Solidarity's Jaco Kleynhans said Ferdinand Lubbe and Louis Cooper were charged departmentally because they spoke to each other in Afrikaans on their two-way radio systems.

Lubbe is a process controller and Cooper a senior production operator.

A colleague, Terry Nicholson, laid a complaint, saying that on the night of June 23 he repeatedly asked the two to "please" speak English on their radios.

At the hearing, Lubbe testified that he had no problem speaking English on the radio.

However, everyone who worked that night understood Afrikaans well and some of the conversations about which Nicholson had complained had had nothing to do with their work.

Lubbe said: "Company rules state that English has to be spoken to ensure understanding.

"Understanding was not an issue on this night. Neither production time nor the standard of our work were compromised through our language usage."

Nicholson, the foreman, had a problem with Afrikaans, according to Lubbe.

He told us several times he hated Afrikaans because he had to speak it in the old army.

According to testimony, Nicholson liked to mock Afrikaans speakers "as if they were dumb".

Lubbe also emphasised that he didn't mind speaking English to colleagues who did not understand Afrikaans.

"However, I feel it is an insult... to speak English to an Afrikaans speaker while everyone understand Afrikaans," he added.

According to Kleynhans, Solidarity is seeing increasing language discrimination against its members in the workplace.

"We are very concerned that multilingualism in the workplace is starting to die out.

"There should be an urgent review into ways to protect and respect workers' linguistic rights, taking practical considerations into regard."

Kleynhans said both Lubbe and Cooper had received a written warning.

"We would like to see that it is required of every company to compose an internal communication policy which would regulate multiligualism in the workplace."


News source: www.news24.co.za

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Jaa boet. Dis nou 'n issue ne? Maar ons agents praat almal english en afrikaans mos
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Johannesburg - Businessman Tokyo Sexwale called for the gallows at Pretoria C-Max Prison to be restored as part of the country's heritage, said the correctional services department on Sunday.

Department spokesperson Manelisi Wolela said Sexwale and fellow former political prisoner David Moisi toured the prison on Saturday with National Commissioner of Correctional Services Linda Mti.

"Mr Sexwale visited his former cell and that of Mr Moisi who was saved by the stay of executions from the gallows while incarcerated at the Pretoria C-Max prison," said Wolela.

The visit was part of a programme aimed at remoulding former symbols of apartheid repression into heritage sites for education purposes, so that SA would, in former President Nelson Mandela's words, "never, never and never again" witness such oppression.

Mti welcomed Sexwale's offer to be a correctional services ambassadors to promote initiatives aimed at building a correctional system that belongs to all.


News source: www.news24.co.za

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