As the economy continues to stagnate and prices keep rising, millions of South Africans are struggling to make ends meet. During the icy winter months, energy budgets are stretched to breaking point. One entrepreneur has started a business that not only empowers start-ups in townships, but also helps people stay warm and prepare hot meals every day of the year. Mark Roughton has more. #Gas #StartUps #Energy

Would you like to get in shape but also make a contribution to improving the environment? Then this fitness studio might be for you. Members at Sacramento Eco Fitness aren't riding for miles but for watts instead. The gym is using its members' workout energy to generate electricity that's powering the facility. Sibel Karkus has more. #SustainableLiving #EcoFitness #Gym

South Africa's heavily indebted state power company, Eskom, could be given a lifeline that's designed to turn-around the troubled utility, after President Cyril Ramaphosa campaigned to split the company to make it viable. Eskom's biggest shareholder, the state asset manager Public Investment Corp, has reportedly proposed a debt-equity swap that would convert its $6.4-billion holding into equity. In return, PIC would have a say over Eskom's management - including board representation. For more on this, we spoke to Ian Cruickshanks in Johannesburg. #PIC #Eskom #DebtEquitySwap

France will slap a 3% tax on revenues that tech giants like Facebook and Amazon earn in the country. It comes after European nations failed to reach a consensus on an EU-wide digital tax for companies taking advantage of lower tax regimes to avoid paying dues where they actually make their money. But as Mobin Nasir reports, France's move could spark a trade spat with Washington, which has threatened to retaliate. Elena Casas has been following the story and joined us from Paris. #DigitalTax #Amazon #Tariffs

Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro has moved a step closer to achieving what's eluded many of his predecessors: reforming the country's pension system. His government says it wants to save money to spend on projects that will expand the economy. But critics warn the changes will hurt the poor and vulnerable the most. Paolo Montecillo reports.

A slowing Chinese economy, weighed down by a trade war with the US, is being blamed for falling car sales in China. Despite the first rise in a year last month, industry data shows passenger car sales in the world's largest market fell 14-percent in the first half of the year. There's little sign the slump will end anytime soon and as Samantha Vadas reports, the dismal sales figures are putting a dent in the profits of the world's automakers. #China #CarSales #TradeWar

US Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell has hinted the country's first interest rate cut in over a decade could happen this month. In a report released ahead of his appearance before Congress, he wrote that many Fed officials now believe various conditions have strengthened the case for a rate cut. In his testimony, Powell named risks to the US economy including a broader global slowdown, trade tensions as well as inflation that's fallen below the Fed's annual 2-percent target. #USFed #JeromePowell #USeconomy

Wealthy US financier Jeffrey Epstein has been charged with operating a sex trafficking ring of underage girls. He's accused of recruiting dozens of teenagers, and using victims to find other girls he could then abuse. The 66-year-old has long been surrounded by the rich and powerful, including US presidents Bill Clinton and Donald Trump, who have now distanced themselves from the registered sex offender. As Nick Harper reports, Epstein has pleaded 'not guilty' and is being held in New York. #JeffreyEpstein #SexTrafficking #SexOffender

One of the best-selling cars ever made is driving off into the sunset. Millions of Beetles have rolled off production lines around the world for the past seven decades. But that comes to an end this week after years of slowing sales. Paolo Montecillo reports.

#Volkswagen #Bettle #ClassicCars

The two men vying to become Britain's next prime minister have squared-off in their first televised debate.. arguing over the prospect of leaving the European Union by the end of October. Former foreign secretary Boris Johnson and the UK's current top diplomat Jeremy Hunt say that if elected, they'd secure a better Brexit deal from the EU. But as Mobin Nasir reports, the incoming prime minister could have a tough time taking the UK out of the EU without stifling economic growth. We spoke to Chris Roebuck, an economist and leadership expert in London. #BorisJohnson #JeremyHunt #Brexit