JSE, top 40 index down slightly after gains

THE JSE all-share index and the top 40 index pared some gains after hitting intraday all-time highs yesterday‚ due to stability around the US fiscal cliff issue.

Risk-on trade saw money flowing through to emerging markets with investors looking for attractive yields.

Platinums led the gains on the JSE after being under pressure for the last few months due to strikes‚ while gold counters weighed as a result of a weaker gold price and stronger rand. At 5pm‚ the all share index closed up 0.26% to 38 287.54 points‚ with the top 40 index gaining 0.24% to 34 008.67 points.

“The stronger rand and weaker gold price put gold miners under a bit of pressure‚ while platinums gained after being weak for the last few months because of the labour problems. Resources were flat‚ with the sector seemingly not too worried about mining taxes issues‚” a trader said.

European markets were firmer in late trade‚ with London’s FTSE 100 seen 0.3% higher at 4.52pm‚ after the Bank of England decided to stand pat on rates‚ keeping its key interest rate at 0.5% and the size of its bond-buying stimulus programme at £375-billion (R5.27-trillion).

The European Central Bank left its official interest rates unchanged for the fifth month in a row‚ in line with financial markets’ expectations.

Data from the US labour market came in slightly better than expected with jobless claims falling by 25 000 to 370 000. But the numbers were overshadowed by the closely watched US employment report from the Bureau of Labour Statistics‚ Dow Jones Newswires reported. On the South African front‚ the top stock gainers were Lonmin surging 4.29% to close at R39.65‚ Aquarius jumping 5.08% to R6.20 and Anglo American Platinum shooting up 3.5% to R414.

Losers included Gold Fields dropping 2.19% to R99.58‚ after Moody’s downgraded the company’s rating.

The ratings agency said the action was triggered by Gold Fields’s plans to unbundle its South African mining assets – the Kloof-Driefontein Complex and Beatrix mines – into a newly formed entity‚ to be called Sibanye Gold.

AngloGold Ashanti lost 2.17% to R262.91 and Harmony dipped 1.21% to R65.20.

Absa rallied 5.5% to close at R149.50 after it announced it was in the process of buying 100% of Barclays Africa for R18.3billion. Investec Ltd rose 1.67% to R55.50.

Among retailers The Foschini Group gained a healthy 2.67% to R138.49‚ while in construction Aveng lost 1.45% to R27.10. – BDLive