absa

Von Arbeiten auf dem Straßenpflaster und in den Markten der Großstadte bis in die Tiefen landlicher Enklaven, Sudafrikaner passen sich jedem Medium an und stellen eine beachtliche Bandbreite an Kunsthandwerk her.

SA's low-cost national bank account extends banking to low-income earners and those living beyond the reach of banking services. "Mzansi" has proved to be a hit, with over 1.5-million accounts opened in less than a year - the great majority by South Africans who had never banked before.

Vodacom, First National Bank and Sanlam have been voted tops in a survey measuring customer satisfaction in the insurance, telecommunications and banking sectors. The results suggest that South African customers are more satisfied than their counterparts in Europe and America.

SA house prices are going through the roof - so much so that a major bank has revised its definition of a middle-class home. Experts are divided over whether the boom is a bubble about to burst, or holds the potential for sustainable growth.

The photographic exhibition "Celebrating Johannesburg" kicks off the new year for residents and tourists looking for a fresh angle on South Africa's commercial heartland, with various aspects of the city seen through the lenses of five South African photographers and one Londoner.