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Good morning Voornaam,

Things are much, much, much (did I say much?) better at Astral Foods.
At De Beers, diamonds are starting to sparkle again.
Boeing didn't give 2024 guidance as it tries to manage the latest crisis.
TreasuryONE on the US interest rate decision and why the rand is stronger despite it.
Recap the clothing retailer updates (The Foschini Group | Mr Price | Truworths | Pepkor) in the Ghost Wrap podcast>>>
Magic Markets brings you the latest on Tesla and Volkswagen in this podcast>>>

Jaltech's latest Section12B investment might be of interest to you if you have a significant tax liability before the end of February. Join Jaltech's webinar for the launch of their Refinance Tax-deductible Solar Investment. South African taxpayers can benefit from a 100% Section 12B tax deduction before the February 2024 deadline.

Local company news:

Astral Foods had a year in 2023 that can best be described as extra hot, with a side of disappointing chips and a nasty aftertaste. Literally everything went wrong for the poultry business.

There's something for the roosters to crow about now, with reduced load shedding and chickens that are the right size when they head off to the you-know-what before finding their way onto our plates. Astral even refers to the latest period as being after the "big bird era" where the slaughtering programme was so disrupted by load shedding that the birds were bigger than they should be, leading to profitability issues from feeding oversized birds.

The net result? Profits. Decent profits! I have no idea why being a "chicken" means being cowardly. The resilience required to operate in this sector is astonishing.

We now move from drumsticks to diamonds in Ghost Bites, with Anglo American highlighting improved demand and pricing for diamonds in De Beers. Lab-grown diamonds were thrust into the spotlight in 2023 and I've enjoyed thinking about where this market might settle. It's good to see a comeback for the mined variety, which I believe will need to be positioned more as a luxury than an affluent product over time. The supply-demand battles continue!

Ellies is in business rescue I'm afraid. After years of failing to adapt, the company tried to save itself by making an offer for a solar business at an inflated price. The banks weren't interested in funding the transaction and the deal is over, along with any happy prospects for Ellies. We can blame our government for many things, but failing to evolve as a business isn't one of them. Adapt or die!

Aside from a wide variety of Little Bites on a busy day of news, I also covered the sideways action at EOH (I struggle to see a bull case here), the festive season trading stats at Hyprop and the production and sales update from Impala Platinum.

Get everything you need to know on these stories in Ghost Bites>>>

Also be sure to add the Ghost Wrap podcast to your weekly listening regime. This week, you need only five minutes to recap the clothing retailer updates: The Foschini Group, Mr Price, Truworths and Pepkor. This podcast is designed for busy people just like you, with thanks to Mazars. You'll find it here>>>

Although the Stanley cup craze doesn't seem to have found South Africa yet, it probably will. In Dominique Olivier's latest example of business storytelling, she explains how and why people are losing their minds over Stanley cups. This is the exact same behaviour that we see playing out in the stock market over and over again. Prepare yourself for the hype here>>>

International company news:

Thanks to data and automation specialists B2IT, Magic Markets moves from shoes to cars this week. We tackled the latest earnings from Tesla (always an exciting story, let's face it) as well as how Volkswagen is doing a traditional stalwart in this tough industry. As always, there's much to learn about both companies in this podcast>>>

A few weeks ago, Dominique Olivier ripped into the safety culture (or lack thereof) at Boeing. Things are going from bad to worse for the company in that regard, with Boeing deciding not to give 2024 earnings guidance based on the current crisis. At least Boeing managed to reduce its losses at the end of 2023, which also tells you something about where the company is right now. When making a smaller loss is the goal, alles isn't oraait by die huis.

At least the narrative coming from the top seems to have changed, with current CEO Dave Calhoun saying "we caused the problem" (with reference to the Alaska Airlines fuselage panel that blew out midflight).

Although the company isn't giving earnings guidance for 2024, it has affirmed the financial targets for 2025 and 2026. Most of all, this tells you that Airbus simply cannot meet the global demand for planes, hence Boeing has to exist. It would just be nice if they built decent planes again.

Have a great day!

READ: Why are we losing our minds over Stanley cups?
(by Dominique Olivier)

You’ve heard of an emotional support animal, sure. But why are people all around North America suddenly talking about an “emotional support water bottle”? Is the Stanley cup really the last word in personal hydration – or is this just a sippy cup for adults? Dominique Olivier investigates.

Learn about the Stanley cup craze in this article

Currencies, commodities and rates: TreasuryONE Market Update

The important news this morning is that the Fed has left interest rates unchanged. Some hawkish commentary accompanied this news, putting the rand on the back foot initially.

This morning though, the rand is at R18.67! This is because our currency was given a boost yesterday by the release of the ADP Employment Change numbers, which is a measure of private payroll data in the US. It came in well below expectations, giving us a clue that non-farm payrolls (due for release tomorrow) might be disappointing. The rand made it all the way down to the lower R18.60s before the hawkish commentary stopped the rally.

Gold is at $2,045 this morning, Brent Crude is at $80.84 and platinum ZAR is R17,129. Importantly, the US 10-year yield has dipped to 3.94%!

As a Ghost Mail reader, you have a wonderful early bird opportunity to register for the 2024 post-budget panel discussion hosted by TreasuryONE, Econometrix and ETM Analytics. I absolutely cannot recommend this enough and I will also be attending to learn from the panel. Get it in your diaries now already by registering at this link>>>

LISTEN: Magic Markets podcast

In Episode 160 of Magic Markets, we put on our driving shoes and got behind the wheels of Tesla and Volkswagen.

This is new-age vs. tradition in the world of automotive manufacturing, which is a tough place to make money on a good day.

What can we learn from recent earnings updates and the share price trends? Find out in this podcast, brought to you by international data and automation specialists B2IT.

Listen to Magic Markets Episode 160 here (27 minutes long)

LISTEN: What to do with those festive savings with Siyabulela Nomoyi of Satrix

Saving and investing over December - January isn't easy. To keep you inspired, Siya joined me to cover a wide range of ETF topics - along with some tips of how to keep those goals going over this period of endless spending!

Listen to the Ghost Stories podcast here (38 minutes long)

READ: Letter from the Editor - from Cape to Clarens

A roadtrip across South Africa is always a treat. Of course, it's also a way to see what is really going on out there. I wrote about my experience from Cape Town to Clarens (and back again!)

Read about my roadtrip and observations in this article

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