Breaking News Today – Friday 25 July 2025

Business & Tech News 

Impala Platinum Announces Major PGM Investment

Impala Platinum, one of the global platinum producers globally, have announced a new investment of up to R12 billion to expand its platinum processing and smelting facilities, with an initial R8.2 billion allocated to the Zimbabwean smelter and SO2 abatement plan. This expansion aims to increase the PGM mining group’s beneficiation capacity, reduce the environmental footprint, and grow the local beneficiation of ore in Southern Africa. The Zimbabwean smelter expansion will accommodate an additional 600,000 6E PGM ounces per annum. Platinum prices have risen by over 58% this year in a demand driven market in both the jewellery production and manufacturing sectors. This impact is now providing opportunity for PGM mining houses to expand their current operations. The new Smelter is expected to be completed within a five-year period.

US Indices hit Another Record High Yesterday:

The S&P 500 index in the US at yesterday’s market close, added 0.1% to its all-time high set on Wednesday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 316 points, or 0.7%, while the Nasdaq composite rose 0.2% above its own record. The big price drive came from tech giant Alphabet that rose by 1% after Google and YouTube’s parent company delivered a higher that expected profit in Q2 than analysts had expected. The company also indicated that would be increasing its budget for AI chips and other AI related investments this year by $10 billion to $85 billion. That news nudged AI related stocks further, with Nvidia’s stock price gaining 1.7%, which on it’s own, due to its market price, pushed the index into new territory.

Google Testing a new “WEB-Guide” Search Product

Yesterday saw Google launch a new AI-powered search feature called Web Guide that aims to provide an enhanced web-search results offering that will organize one’Google Search results. Web Guide is a Serch Lab product which uses AI technology to arrange the search results, grouping pages related to specific aspects of the search query. Search Labs experiments is a platform that allows Google to test out new search ideas by letting users opt in to those they find interesting. The experiments can be turned on or off at any time and include things like Google’s AI Mode, Notebook LM, filmmaking tool Flow, and other, more niche ideas, like an audio show based on news from your Google Discover feed.

Business, Tech & Market News Shorts: 

• Visa Has expanded its Global network of data-canters, called VisaNet, with the opening of a new data centre in Johannesburg South Africa, the first for Visa on the African continent. he data centre, VisaNet, processes more than 100 billion transactions annually across 200 countries.
• The European Union has commented on recent negotiations on tariffs with the US and said it believes a deal is “within reach”, ahead of a 1 August deadline which President Trump has set as the new tariff implementation date for global tariffs to be imposed on US imports.
• Rwanda’s President Paul Kagame has appointed Justin Nsengiyumva, the deputy governor of the central bank as his new prime-minister, replacing Edouard Ngirente, Rwanda’s long-serving prime minister.
• Intel’s workforce is facing further cuts as its new CEO battles to bring the company back to profitability with bigger losses expected in Q3 despite higher sales anticipated. to shrink by 22% by year end. Newly installed CEO, Lip-Bu Tan targeted focused investments and customer focused product delivery.

Markets by Numbers 

Currencies: 

Currency markets today indicate the US Dollar is slightly stronger this morning, and trading against the Euro at 1.17441 and against the Pound at 1.34967 The Yen is currently at 147.10 to the dollar. The rand is currently at R17.64 to the US dollar. 

Commodities:

• Gold futures prices are currently trading softer and currently at $3356.84 per ounce.  
• Copper prices are trading lower today, and currently at $5.7852 
• Silver futures prices are also trading lower today, and currently at $39.005
• Platinum futures are around -1% lower this morning, and are currently trading at $1419 While Palladium prices are trading -1% lower this morning and currently at $1277
• Brent crude oil prices are currently at $69.63, with WTI trading at $66.44. 
• Cocoa futures have fallen by over -2.5% this morning, and currently at $8232 per ton. 
• Coffee futures are currently trading at $2305

Crypto Currencies:

• Bitcoin prices are trending over -2% lower today, and currently at $115551
• Ether prices are trending -2,6% lower this morning and currently at $3625.90
• $Trumpcoin is currently trading around $9.75

(All prices quoted at approximately 07H45 Central African Time) 

Other Breaking News in Africa Today

Kenyan Independent Police Authority Releases Report on Police Brutality:

The Independent Policing Oversight Authority (IPOA) in Kenya, has laid the blame for the recent deaths of 65 Kenyans that were killed during recent protests, fully on the Kenyan police force. The IPOA has accused police force members of using disproportionate force to subdue a recent series of protests during which 65 people died. In a report released on X Yesterday, IPOA linked most of the deaths to actions by the police, and also indicated the role of opportunists who infiltrated the protests – described as “goons” – who “undermined the principles of peaceful assembly”. There has been a series of protests across Kenya over the last year that have been sparked by issues with the current administration’s authoritarian position that has been criticised by many. Police have been implicated in political abductions of activists that have in some cases resulted in torture and recently even the deaths of those captured.