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In a slower day for corporate news, consumer group Nu-World reported on a hit from a hefty slump in SA's demand for LED TVs, while Renergen reported board departures. In international news, Amazon suffered a court loss in a R10-billion patent battle over cloud technology, though it will appeal.
Nu-World Holdings, which imports markets and distributes branded goods, reported about a 5.4% fall in headline earnings to R31.49 million in its six months to end-February, with sales under pressure in SA. High interest rates, high shipping costs, devaluation of the rand, load shedding and fuel costs weighed, while business confidence remained subdued, causing downward pressure on sales volumes. Load shedding in particular has hit demand for LED TVs, it said, describing the decline as "unprecedented". Valued at about R600 million on the JSE, Nu-World has subsidiaries in Australia, Brazil, Dubai UAE, and Hong Kong, and its shares were down almost 2% in afternoon trade. They have, however, risen more than 6% in the past 12 months.
Helium and natural gas group Renergen announced that Luigi Matteucci, who has chaired the audit and risk committee since 2016, will retire at the group's upcoming AGM. In addition, for personal reasons, independent non-executive director Thembisa Skweyiya, who joined in February 2023, has tendered her resignation with effect from 10 April 2024. "On behalf of the board and executive, we sincerely thank Luigi for the many years of insight and guidance as the Virginia Gas Project has evolved into the producing asset it is today," CEO Stefano Marani said in a statement. "We also thank Thembisa for her contributions to the board. We wish them all the best in their future endeavours," he said.
