JSE follows mining stocks’ decline

The JSE closed weaker on Monday, led by mining stocks, which came under pressure from a stronger rand and weak commodity prices.

The rand tracked a stronger euro, adding to pressure on the resources index, which ended the day down 1.2%. The all share closed 0.42% down to 51,288.7 points, while the blue chip top 40 lost 0.54%.

Platinum miners lost 1.76%, the gold index 1.68%, industrials 0.53%, resources 1.20%‚ food and drug retailers 0.66% and industrials 0.53%.

Banks gained 1.48% and financials rose 0.41%.

AngloGold Ashanti lost 1.63% to R134.88, Gold Fields 2.68%, to R45.42 and Harmony 1.86%, to R21.16. AngloAmerican Platinum lost 2.73% to R288.40 and Impala 1.27%, to R35.05.

Standard Bank gained 2.45% to R143.80 and Nedbank rose 1.82% to R209.75. After results that pleased the market, Naspers ended the day 0.83% down, to R2,616.65

In early evening trade the rand was at R12.835/$ from Sunday’s R12.9209/$. The dollar lost ground against the euro, and European markets rallied, after the Italian government said it would spend up to €17bn to wind down two Italian banks.

Improved sentiment in the market weighed on safe-haven assets. The price of Brent crude, which has recently weighed on many energy stocks in the UK and US, improved slightly earlier in the day, but was likely a “dead cat bounce”, Oanda senior market analyst Craig Erlam said.

Expectations of low oil prices remained a bright spot for SA and “while the firming global growth should provide decent support for commodity prices, further volatility could weigh on the domestic economy”, Old Mutual Multi-Managers investment strategists said.

Local bonds firmed, with the R186 bid at an unchanged 8.51%.

Futures tracked the weaker JSE, with the local near-dated, top-40 Alsi futures index 0.53% lower at 45,461 points. The number of contracts traded was 28,400, from Friday’s 20,243.