Naspers hit after recent rally

THE JSE ended an upbeat week lower on Friday as the market braced itself for a number of risk events this week.

The US Federal Reserve, the European Central Bank and the Bank of Japan are scheduled to have meetings next week, which are likely to increase market volatility.

Heavyweight Naspers dragged the market down on Friday, closing lower for the first time in seven sessions.

The all-share fell 0.29% to 58 223.70 points and the top-40 lost 0.3%. The platinum index dropped 1.62%, general retailers 0.72%, banks 0.59%, industrials 0.55%, and financials 0.41%. The gold index climbed 1.36% and resources 0.51%. The all-share ended the week 1.64% higher.

Steinhoff International dropped 2.36% to R1.24, Redefine Properties 1.47% to R10.69, and Naspers lost 2.4% to R3 339.99.

The rand was at R13.09/$ on Friday evening, after weakening to a six-month low of R13.28/$ in intra-day trade.

The rand has lost more than 6% on the dollar so far this year. —