With crisis comes opportunity. That may be what Mr Price is thinking after the retail group said it planned to ask shareholders to authorise the issue of shares for cash. It says it has identified attractive growth opportunities and it wants to be ready to take advantage of them.

Ninety One also expects opportunities to present themselves over the next few years following the fallout from Covid-19. It's been a baptism of fire since the fund manager, formerly known as Investec Asset Management, demerged from Investec and listed on the London and Johannesburg stock exchanges as Covid-19 exploded in mid-March. Unfortunately, the market correction that month took the shine off a strong performance from its funds in the 11 preceding months.

Also in your newsletter today, Dis-Chem has deferred its decision on a final dividend for now and Tiger Brands has prepared investors for a sharp fall in first-half earnings due to rising impairments. Meanwhile, Investec Property Fund says its investment in logistics properties in Europe may have been timeous given the acceleration of online retail due to Covid-19.

Finally, following the news that Group Five will delist from the JSE next month, fellow civil engineering and construction group Esor is going the same route; a clear sign of the devastation that has struck the sector in the ten years since activity dried up following the 2010 FIFA World Cup.

Have a good day and take care if you're venturing out.

Stephen Gunnion

Managing Editor, InceConnect

Take a look at the latest Insights and sector reports From Ingham Analytics.

"Poseidon and the other banking gods" by Ingham Analytics delves into the murky depths of banking in South Africa, the US and Britain. Are banking executives up to the task of managing Covid-19 economic upsets? This is more than just Greek mythology but as in mythology casualties do, and will, occur. One bank looks like a reasonable bet though. Amazon and JP Morgan in the same sentence - is there possibly a pair trade to take advantage of?

"Iron ore and steel defies Covid-19 macro gloom", which was issued last Thursday, has had multiple downloads. This is a Trader note by Ingham Analytics, which advises on potential short-term profitable opportunities in the markets, and this one has been a particularly profitable call with BHP up 12% and Kumba up 16%.

With concerns swirling over the banking sector in South Africa and the parlous fiscal situation, "Why do central banks do what they do?" is another timely note by Ingham Analytics on the perils of central banks meddling where they shouldn't by intervening in capital markets, creating distortions which you as an investor end up paying for.