The South African rand was flat in early trade on Tuesday, ahead of the release of local central bank data and inflation data that will shed light on the country's economic outlook. At 0512 GMT, the rand traded at 16.

Stocks of non-commodity South African companies look set to rally next year given they trade at a deep discount and trailed the performance of both local bonds and the wider equity gauge in 2025, according to a veteran fund manager at Ninety One Plc the nation’s top investment firm.

By bne IntelliNews South Africa’s President, Cyril Ramaphosa, has urged his people to pursue peace and reconciliation despite the country’s long history of colonial and apartheid rule that suppressed the majority Blacks.

A South Korean court found two contractors that worked on Taiwan's submarine programme guilty of leaking designs for torpedo-launching systems, calling the case a potential "diplomatic burden" for Seoul,

South African annual inflation unexpectedly softened in November, edging closer to the central bank’s new 3% target and boosting hopes for an interest-rate cut next month. Bonds rallied.