The following company announcements, scheduled economic indicators, debt and currency market moves and political events may affect South African markets on Tuesday.

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GLOBAL MARKETS

Asian stocks fell on Tuesday after Citigroup cut 52,000 jobs in a dramatic move to save itself and downbeat policymaker comments reflected worsening economic conditions that will unlikely improve until well into 2009.

Despite relatively stable conditions in short-term credit markets, banks were struggling to contain climbing losses on bad loans, with Citi, the second-largest U.S. bank, reducing 15 percent of its workforce and HSBC laying off an additional 500 staff in Asia after announcing 1,100 job cuts in September.

SOUTH AFRICAN MARKETS

South Africa stocks fell on Monday following world markets lower, with mining shares particularly hammered by worries a global recession will slow demand for commodities.

The drop in the local bourse also hit the rand, which weakened against the dollar, although it recovered from earlier session lows in response to the greenback’s broad-based retreat versus most major currencies.

Johannesburg’s Top-40 index of blue chips slid 3.04 percent to 16,960.77 points while the broader All-Share index lost 2.73 percent to 18,883.18 points.

NORTHAM PLATINUM

South Africa’s Northam Platinum on Monday reported a 14 percent rise in output in the first four months of the 2009 financial year despite a heavy drop in global commodity prices.

Northam said production of metals in concentrate rose 14.3 percent to 3,543 kg (113,910 ounces) in the four-month period, and sales volumes increased by 639 kg, with revenues amounting to 1.3 billion rand ($128.7 million).

TIGER BRANDS / AVI

Business Report newspaper said Coronation Fund Managers supported Tiger Brands’ potential 8 billion rand ($792.2 million) cash-and-shares bid for AVI. Coronation owns 25 percent of AVI, the paper said.

AVI rebuffed the proposal, saying it was “unconvinced” of the commercial logic.

BHP BILLITON

BHP Billiton Ltd/Plc has decided to reactivate its Yeelirrie uranium project in Western Australia, the company said on Tuesday.

BHP said it had notified the Western Australia state government it was initiating a drilling exploration program to confirm the amount of uranium at the lode.

GOLD

Gold steadied on Tuesday as oil regained some footing, while a firmer yen against the U.S. dollar spurred buying in platinum ahead of the release of a supply and demand report by refiner Johnson Matthey.

Speculators in Japan pushed up platinum to a one-week high of $860 an ounce on Monday on expectations Johnson Matthey would release another market-friendly report despite poor car sales, which threatened to slash demand for autocatalysts.

WALL STREET

U.S. stocks fell on Monday on concerns of an accelerating global slowdown after Japan’s surprise news it had fallen into recession and Citigroup Inc, the No. 2 U.S. bank, said it would cut 52,000 jobs, far more than had been expected.

The drop, the fifth in the past six sessions, drove Nasdaq to its lowest closing level in five and a half years and put the Dow and S&P 500 barely above their lows for the year.

BUSINESS DAY

- More market mayhem after G20 damp squib: financial crisis filters through to real economy, and even IMF needs money

- JSE “may be in for 233 million rand claims”

- Tiger Brands may face long AVI battle: targeted group says 8 billion rand offer makes no sense and is same as previous bid

BUSINESS REPORT

- Coronation Fund Managers backs Tiger Brands proposal for AVI

- Goldman Sachs scraps bonuses for senior officers due to global financial crisis

- Vodacom seeks ways to expand: Network provider continues quest for new fish to fry in Africa; 3.8 billion rand in profit after tax

THE STAR

- Skierlik killer’s “naked fear”: Criminologist says there was no specific spark for racist shootings

- ANC serves legal papers, but breakaway Congress of the People rises to the challenge

Source: http://www.afxnews.com

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