Woolworths pins hopes on ANC elective conference
The ANC December elective conference would be a definitive event for Woolworths, group CEO Ian Moir told analysts at Thursday’s results presentation. The South African environment was tough with political uncertainty pushing the economy into a technical recession, he said. "There are some green shoots but they are few and far between. Until we get to mid-December, we are in a hiatus," said Moir as he released the group’s worst results in almost a decade on tough trading conditions in SA and Australia. The share price dropped to a low of R63 in early trade on Thursday, before recovering slightly to close 3.3% lower at just less than R64. Moir’s opening comments provided a forewarning of what was to come. The group was "right in the middle of a massive amount of change", he said. Customer behaviour had changed, technology was advancing at a rapid pace and retail competition was globalising. "You must either change along with these changes or you will whither and die. We are not going ...
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