Africa · Thursday, 5 November 2026
South Africa
No written brief today: there’s too little data for one, or the draft didn’t pass our checks.
Rising
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Breakout
Johnmars3, CC BY-SA 4.0 Breakout
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New
Top today
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East_London_Town_Hall.JPG : Original photographer and uploader was Tim giddings…, Public domain Rising
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Everyday apps here: WhatsApp · FL Studio Mobile · Temu · WayShot:Aesthetic Photo Editor · Tiktok. Apps that top the charts every day. They’re listed after what’s new or in the news.
What the news is talking about
How much of the news here is about each issue today, and how it sounds, compared with the past 4 weeks. From 907 articles by the country’s own news sites today. How we read the news
Share of the coverage
- Democracy and elections More than usual
- YACOOB ABBA OMAR | The morbid symptoms of our geopolitical moment (businessday.co.za)
- Vernon woman shares diary of father, a WWII veteran and Prisoner of War (vernonmorningstar.com)
- WEATHER TODAY: Storm warning for Rustenburg and Reitz from 13:00, Kimberley 38°C (thesouthafrican.com)
Survey · 2023 76% Worried about climate change (Climate Change Opinion Survey (Meta, Yale), survey of Facebook users)
- SA's private sector stays mired in contraction: PMI shows (channelafrica.co.za)
- Immobiliare, nei primi nove mesi del 2026 investimenti a 10,3 miliardi: il retail guida la corsa (laprimapagina.it)
How the news sounds
- Tone−0.1positive minus negative words per 100usually −0.7The GDELT Project
- Anxiety0.8× usual2.6 words per 1,000usually 3.1The GDELT Project
- Fear0.9× usual0.5 words per 1,000usually 0.6The GDELT Project
- Anger0.8× usual4.4 words per 1,000usually 5.3The GDELT Project
- Sadness1.1× usual7.5 words per 1,000usually 7.0The GDELT Project
- Happiness1.0× usual5.4 words per 1,000usually 5.4The GDELT Project
- Financial uncertainty1.0× usual7.5 words per 1,000usually 7.1The GDELT Project
News coverage in more than 100 languages, machine-translated and counted with English word lists, from The GDELT Project.
Pro The news mood day by day for the last 90 days, with each issue’s share, as CSV and PDF. Try Pro free for 7 days →
Issues people are looking up
The top topics in politics, the economy, tech, science, health, climate, education and society that people here read and search about today.
US Embassy South Africa, Public domain New
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Conlan Houston, CC BY-SA 4.0 Rising
Weekly
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Searches that grew the most in the week from Sunday, 25 October 2026, in most of the country’s regions.
By category
Business & economy
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Crime & justice
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Weekly
Aruba Police Force (KPA, #13234), Public domain Rising
Books, arts & history
Rising
J. Malcolm Greany, Public domain Rising
Fashion & beauty
FLOTUS – Melania Trump, Public domain SkinGlow by Kimmarie / Dr. Billy Ingram [1], CC BY 4.0
Food & drink
Falling Everyday app
Everyday app
Everyday app
Movies & TV
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Music
Gage Skidmore, CC BY-SA 4.0 Breakout
Celebrities & creators
1947
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Politics & world affairs
US Embassy South Africa, Public domain New
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Society & beliefs
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William Warby, CC BY 2.0 Rising
Sports
Estevoaei, CC BY-SA 4.0 Rising
US Embassy Johannesburg, South Africa, Public domain Rising
Timmy96, CC0 Rising
Tech & AI
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Travel & places
East_London_Town_Hall.JPG : Original photographer and uploader was Tim giddings…, Public domain Johnmars3, CC BY-SA 4.0 Breakout
Industries here
Government & public sector 31Media & entertainment 19Travel & tourism 10Music 10Tech & software 6Sports & fitness 4Advertising & marketing 2Telecom & internet 1Cars & mobility 1Transport & logistics 1Nonprofits & NGOs 1
The numbers behind the mood
The latest official figures, with the period each one covers. Yearly numbers can be a year or more old.
Politics in the news
- Protests in the news3reports of events, mostly in English5 Nov 2026 · usually 6 a dayThe GDELT Project
- Violence in the news20reports of events, mostly in English5 Nov 2026 · usually 26 a dayThe GDELT Project
Economy
- Inflation4.1%Jul 2026 · −0.7 pts since Jun 2026World Bank GEM · CC BY 4.0
- Unemployment32.9%Jun 2026 · +0.0 pts since May 2026World Bank GEM · CC BY 4.0
- Consumer confidence99.3100 = long-run averageMar 2026 · +0.1 since Feb 2026OECD
- Central bank rate7.25%Oct 2026 · ±0.00 pts since Sept 2026BIS
- Real house prices1.3%Q2 2026 · −1.4 pts since Q1 2026BIS
- GDP growth1.1%2025 · +0.6 pts since 2024World Bank · CC BY 4.0
- Youth unemployment59.9%2025 · −0.3 pts since 2024World Bank (ILO estimate) · CC BY 4.0
- Currency vs the euro18.427ZAR per euro5 Nov 2026 · euro −0.5% since 29 Oct 2026European Central Bank · available free of charge from the ECB
Business
- Business confidence100.4100 = long-run averageMar 2026 · +0.1 since Feb 2026OECD
Research
Most-published fields last month
- Education
- Sociology and Political Science
- Infectious Diseases
- Astronomy and Astrophysics
Society
- People online78.4%2024 · +0.0 pts since 2023World Bank (ITU) · CC BY 4.0
- Say humans mainly cause climate change27.8%survey of Facebook users2023Meta Data for Good and Yale Program on Climate Change Communication · CC0 (public domain)
- Want climate made a high government priority67.1%survey of Facebook users2023Meta Data for Good and Yale Program on Climate Change Communication · CC0 (public domain)
Charts
Netflix · TV
1How to Ruin Diwali
Breakout
2Black Gold
Falling
3The One About Matthew Perry
New
4Nobody Wants This
5Lupin
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7The Four of Us
Falling
9A Couple of Lies
10Unforgettable
Netflix Top 10 · 2026-11-01
Netflix · Films
1Surviving Hurricane Otis
Breakout
2Collision Course
New
3Seriously Single Too
Falling
4Despicable Me 4
Falling
5Nowhere to Run
6Animals
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7Which Brings Me to You
8Blackout
9Doing Life
10Money Train
Netflix Top 10 · 2026-11-01
Apple Music · Artists
1DJ Zinhle, Nayvee Womculo & Young Stunna
2Tman Xpress & Mellow & Sleazy
3Darque, Atmos Blaq, Zawadi Yamungu & Tycoon
4Thatohatsi & Sjava
5Dlala Thukzin & Zeh McGeba
6Stixx & Babalwa M
7Mihlali The Guy, Dankie Boi, Mr Thela & Cairo CPT
8G-Jealous
Apple Music · 2026-11-06
Apple Podcasts · Shows
1The Diary of a CEO
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2Global News Podcast
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3Somnyama Sunsets
Falling
4BizNews Radio
Rising
5The Joe Rogan Experience
6Podcast and Chill with MacG
Falling
7The Mel Robbins Podcast
8Rotten Mango
9Djy Jaivane
Falling
10Crime Junkie
Show the top 100
Apple Podcasts · 2026-11-06
App Store · Free apps
1Temu
Rising
2FlickReels - AI Story & Drama
Falling
3GoTyme Bank ZA (TymeBank)
4ChatGPT
5IEC South Africa
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6Capitec Bank
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7Facebook app
Rising
8SHEIN - Compras Online
Falling
9Tiktok
Rising
10YouTube app
Rising
Show the top 100
App Store · 2026-11-06
App Store · Paid apps
1Grade 12 Life Sciences
2Chromagraph Camera
3Difela Tsa Sione by ZolApps
4Shadowrocket
5Grade 10 Mathematics
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6Grade 11 Mathematics
7Grade 10 Life Sciences
8AnkiMobile Flashcards
Rising
9Icilongo levangeli
10FL Studio Mobile
Rising
Show the top 50
App Store · 2026-11-06
Data credits: App Store · Apple Music · Apple Podcasts · Google Trends · Netflix Top 10 · Wikipedia. These signals show what people look up, watch, play and buy online. How it works.