The Gibbons Report: 8 July 2026

Shell (FB) GOVERNMENT CUTS OFF FUNDS FOR NELSON MANDELA BAY, BUFFALO CITY & OTHERS National Treasury is withholding funds from 69 municipalities, including Nelson Mandela Bay and Buffalo City. These monies are the July transfer of what’s known as the equitable shares, and the decision follows years of persistent financial mismanagement, repeat audit failures and continued non-compliance with the Municipal Finance Management Act. Also affected – Johannesburg and Mangaung, among others. The municipalities were informed of the decision in advance and given an opportunity to explain why their transfers should not be withheld. Treasury says the move is not punitive but intended to instil financial discipline. ABU DHABI OIL MAJOR TO BUY SHELL S.A. It’s been confirmed that Abu Dhabi’s National Oil Company – ADNOC – will buy Shell’s South African downstream business for just over R16 billion. The deal includes nearly 600 fuel stations, as well as Shell’s wholesale, aviation and lubricants businesses. What you see won’t change – the Gulf major intends to keep the Shell brand. ADNOC has already expanded into Saudi Arabia and Egypt and is looking to build a much bigger footprint in other parts of Africa. S.A. HEALTHCARE SECTOR LOSING R30bn A YEAR TO FRAUD, WASTE South Africa’s healthcare sector is haemorrhaging up to R30 billion per year due to fraud, waste and abuse. That’s about 15% of total spend. It comes at a time when more and more South Africans are dropping medical aid because they can’t afford it. The figures come from the acting head of the Special Investigations Unit, Leonard Lekgetho, speaking at the annual Board of Healthcare Funders Conference in Cape Town. Lekgetho, quoted by Business Day, says common abuses include procurement irregularities, counterfeit medicines, price-fixing, duplicate claims, overservicing and fraudulent billing. His presentation identified that the health sector is one of South Africa’s most corruption-vulnerable industries. MARKETS: OIL UP ON RENEWED U.S. ATTACKS ON IRAN In the markets, oil is once again up – trading just over $76 per barrel this morning. This follows a new round of air strikes by the US on Iran, in the wake of Iranian attacks on three tankers in the Gulf. The Trump administration has also revoked Iran’s licence to sell oil, provoking fears about the unravelling of the ceasefire. The JSE continues to slump: the All-Share index and Top 40 moving in lock-step – both down three-quarters of a per cent at the bell. London’s FTSE ended just above flat, while in New York, the Dow was down a quarter of a per cent, the S&P 500 down half a per cent, and the Nasdaq down 1.2%. Tokyo this morning is down 0.1% - Hong Kong up 2.1% - Sydney down 0.8%. The US dollar is unchanged at $1.14 to the euro. The rand: $16.27 to the dollar, R18.57 to the euro, and R21.72 to sterling. Gold $4,127 – platinum $1,642 and Bitcoin – just on $62,900.