🇿🇦 Mzansi Market Memo — Tuesday, 12 August 2025

Molweni gents and gentleladies.

The JSE dipped slightly to 100,630 yesterday, while the rand stayed steady at R17.75/$. Stats SA’s latest numbers show manufacturing output holding its ground, with strong quarterly gains in food, chemicals, and motor vehicles. On the corporate front, leadership changes are in motion at Growthpoint, Prosus’s Just Eat takeover is officially cleared, and Rainbow Chicken is crowing about a triple-digit earnings jump.

Let’s get to the money.

Before the Bell

• Global & Local Market Recap

  • JSE All Share Index: Down 0.22% to 100,630

  • USD/ZAR Exchange Rate: R17.75

• Stats SA today: Mining: Production and sales (June 2025); Quarterly Labour Force Survey (QLFS) (Q2 2025)

• Earnings today: 

  • Results: WeaveR (Interim); Merafe (Interim)

📣 SENS Roundup + StatsAS

• PK Investments Limited (PKI)
  PKI issued a formal response to MAS P.L.C.’s recent SENS announcement regarding PKI’s voluntary bid for MAS shareholders. The letter, available on PKI’s website, addresses points of clarification and reiterates that MAS shareholders should base decisions solely on the voluntary bid circular and related transaction documents.

• Growthpoint Properties (GRT)
  Announced executive leadership changes effective in FY27. Estienne de Klerk will succeed Norbert Sasse as GCEO on 1 July 2026, while José Snyders will take over as GCFO on 1 January 2026. Both bring extensive property, capital markets, and leadership experience. The changes are structured for a smooth transition, with current executives staying on during the handover period.

• Prosus N.V. (PRX) & Naspers
  Secured all regulatory clearances, including European Commission approval, for its acquisition of Just Eat Takeaway.com. The acceptance period for shareholders closes on 1 October 2025. The deal aims to create a Europe-based food delivery leader, with integration expected to accelerate JET’s performance through Prosus’s scale and AI expertise.

• Rainbow Chicken (RBO)
  Issued a trading statement forecasting FY25 EPS of 62.02–66.07c (+206% to +226%) and HEPS of 63.55–67.60c (+214% to +234%). Stronger results are driven by higher sales, improved operational performance, lower input costs, and reduced load-shedding-related expenses.

• Italtile Limited (ITE)
  Posted a sales update showing retail division growth of 2% and like-for-like sales up 1%, though manufacturing sales fell 5% amid excess industry capacity. FY25 EPS and HEPS are expected to rise by up to 6.4% and 5.2% respectively. Results are due 25 August 2025.

StasSA Manufacturing: Production and Sales (Preliminary) June 2025:

• Headline:

  • Manufacturing production grew 1.9% y/y in June 2025, driven mainly by food & beverages (+6.0%) and petroleum, chemicals, rubber & plastics (+1.9%).

  • Compared to May 2025 (seasonally adjusted), production was flat (0.0%).

• Quarterly view (Q2 2025 vs Q1 2025):

  • Output rose 1.5%.

  • Key contributors: petroleum, chemicals, rubber & plastics (+4.3%) and motor vehicles, parts & accessories (+9.8%).

• Sales (current prices):

  • Up 2.9% y/y in June 2025; +2.4% m/m (seasonally adjusted).

  • Q2 2025 sales were 1.2% higher than Q1, led by food & beverages (+3.3%) and motor vehicles & other transport (+5.5%).

• Notable detail:

  • Stats SA will implement a new sample for July 2025, with historical data linked to avoid breaks in the series.

• Read more: StatsSA

🧠 Exec Picks

SA’s Slow-Motion Fiscal Cliff
Economist Dawie Roodt warns that SA is edging toward a fiscal crisis — burning over R1 billion a day on debt service while growth languishes below 1%. Without urgent reform, debt levels will keep rising, crowding out social and infrastructure spend. Small, targeted policy shifts — from property rights certainty to unlocking private power and freight — could triple GDP growth in a year and reverse the slide.
Read more: Daily Investor

From ANC Policy to DA Promise
DA leader John Steenhuisen has slammed the ANC’s transformation policies as “job killers” and pledged to repeal them if in power. His plan: scrap BEE in favour of economic growth-led empowerment, streamline labour laws, and attract investment by removing political barriers. Critics argue the approach risks reversing gains in diversity and inclusion; supporters say it would unleash private sector hiring.
Read more: IOL

Trump’s Banking Crackdown
US President Donald Trump has signed an executive order banning “politicised” banking, forcing regulators to scrap rules that allow reputation risk to justify closing accounts. The order mandates banks base decisions solely on objective risk — not political or religious beliefs — and reinstates customers previously “debanked” under such practices. The move could have ripple effects on global banking compliance, especially in cross-border finance.
Read the full order: White House

🧾 Glossary: Market Moves Explained

When the jargon hits harder than a load shedding schedule, we’ve got you. Here’s your quick decode of today’s financial buzzwords.

• Debt Service: The interest and principal repayments a government or company must make on its debt — high debt service can crowd out other spending.

• Empowerment Policy (BEE): South Africa’s Broad-Based Black Economic Empowerment framework, designed to address historical inequalities in business ownership and employment.

• Labour Law Reform: Changes to employment regulations aimed at altering hiring, firing, or wage-setting rules - often politically contentious.

• Cross-Border Finance: Financial transactions, investments, or banking services that involve multiple countries, often subject to complex compliance rules.

😂 Meme of the Day

🧾 Final Word

We’ve got a strange mix today: solid sector data, some corporate wins, but a macro picture that feels like it’s tightening. The fiscal cliff warning isn’t alarmist - the maths on debt service is ugly, and every day we delay reform, the harder the climb back gets.

Globally, Trump’s banking order is the kind of left-field policy move that forces risk teams and regulators everywhere to rethink their playbooks. The DA–ANC policy clash is a reminder that next year’s election isn’t just about who runs the state, but about the economic rules of the game.

Stay sharp.

—

Mzansi Market Memo is compiled daily by Rayhaan @ the Memo for investors and operators who trade before the sun rises. *This memo is for informational purposes only. Not financial advice. Still, we’d buy low and read high.

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