South Africa's Cabinet has endorsed a report recommending the introduction of export taxes on iron-ore and steel, where appropriate, to push producers to sell more of their products domestically and to protect local manufacturers who have been struggling to pay export-level prices

The Anglo American mining group will not spin off its South African assets into a separate entity to please some investors, but along with the rest of the mining industry needs regulatory certainty from the government from a future investment point of view when the ruling ANC party holds its congress in Mangaung later this month.

The task of Judge Ian Farlam’s Commission of Inquiry to determine precisely what circumstances and factors were the identifiable causes of the loss of life at Marikana, will probably reveal the tip of an iceberg and lead to recommendations that may be applicable to many sectors of, or to the entire mining industry.

Italy's Eni announced new discoveries at its major gas field in Mozambique on Wednesday, 5 December, with potential for even more as it looks to Africa to boost its production.

Thank you also to our hosts at the Gordon Institute of Business Science. GIBS is not only a fine institution of learning – it has also established a tradition of fostering debate on issues critical to South Africa’s future, and I am very pleased that it is the venue for our discussion this afternoon.