Bourse flat as Cutifani’s move influences Anglo units

STOCKS edged lower yesterday with the fortunes of a top and bottom performer tied to one man – Mark Cutifani, who will leave AngloGold Ashanti to head global mining giant Anglo American.

The Top40 index closed 0.03 percent lower at 35 632.41, while the all share index, the broadest measure of the JSE’s performance, dipped 0.02 percent to 40 155.62.

Shares in Anglo American jumped 2 percent on the JSE during the session on news of Cutifani’s appointment and closed 1.53 percent higher at R281.10, making it one of the Top40 index’s best performers.

Shares in the company he left behind, AngloGold Ashanti, closed 2.83 percent lower at R251, making it the blue chip index’s worst performer. The shares earlier tumbled to their lowest levels in seven months.

“Gold [mining] is off quite a bit in sympathy with AngloGold and Harmony,” said Michael Carlsson, a trader at Johannesburg stockbroking firm Consilium Securities.

Cutifani replaces Cynthia Carroll as Anglo American’s chief executive from April and takes on what is regarded as one of the toughest jobs in the mining business.

His departure has left AngloGold with a void in its leadership in a year where labour strife looks set to again cloud mining in South Africa. AngloGold’s board has given itself a year to find a successor.

Harmony Gold closed 3.13 percent lower at R66.82 yesterday after falling 3.5 percent in the previous session. The gold producer was pummelled for a second consecutive day after the firm said its Kusasalethu mine west of Johannesburg remained closed due to labour strife and could shut permanently with the loss of about 6 000 jobs.

Other gainers included Absa, which added 1.62 percent to R166, and MTN, which rose 1.22 percent to R180.48.

Trade picked up with 137 million shares changing hands, compared with’s the 113 million shares traded on Monday. Advancers outnumbered decliners, 149 to 138.