Investors eye SA, but inflation rises
SOUTH Africa’s composite leading business economic indicator rose 2.4% year on year in June after bottoming at a 0.1% increase in March‚ data released by the South African Reserve Bank showed.
OFFSHORE investors bought a net R660million in South African bonds and a net R3.9billion in South African stocks in the week ending August 16, data from the Johannesburg Stock Exchange showed.
DRDGold, South Africa’s fifth-largest gold producer, reported an 11% rise in full-year earnings a share to 68c on Friday, boosted by a strong rand-gold price in the first half and higher production.
SUPER Group‚ the JSElisted transport logistics and mobility company‚ reported a 19% rise in headline earnings a share to 213c in the year to June. CEO Peter Mountford said: “All of our divisions performed well overall.”
EDUCATION provider Curro had headline earnings a share of 5.2c in the six months to June compared with a loss of 1.9c a share in the corresponding period last year. Revenue increased by 91% to R309-million.
SOUTH Africa’s consumer inflation accelerated to 6.3% year on year in July from 5.5% in June, data from Statistics South Africa showed. On a monthon-month basis, July CPI stood at 1.1% from 0.3% in June.
GOLD Fields said it lost $129-million in the three months to June compared with earnings of $27-million in the previous quarter, hit by impairment charges at its Tarkwa and Damang operations in Ghana.
DIVERSIFIED resources group Exxaro, a big supplier to Eskom, reported a 39% drop in first-half headline earnings, booking an impairment of R292-million on a coal mine that could cease production.
SOUTH African shares of top mining company BHP Billiton fell 3% after the company missed forecasts with a 15% drop in half-year profit and said it would slow a long-awaited move into potash to curb spending.
SHOPRITE, Africa’s biggest grocer, missed forecasts with an 11% rise in full-year profit as debt-laden consumers in its core South African market cut spending. Sales rose 12% to R92.7-billion.