JSE closes flat after weak data from US
THE JSE closed flat yesterday, following US markets lower after weaker-than-expected US economic data and the continued US political deadlock.
At the 5pm close‚ the all-share index closed flat (0.09%) at 44 006.86 points and the blue-chip top-40 index was also flat (0.02%).
The gold mining and resources indices gave back 1.27% and 0.76% respectively‚ due to lower commodity prices.
The banking sector led the gains on the day‚ adding 1.46% as it continued to outperform after some major banks reached yearly highs last week.
“The US government shutdown remains the theme prevalent in markets at present‚ detracting from the theme of [US monetary stimulus] tapering for now‚ as legis- lators appear to be making little progress in finding accord‚” IG Markets analyst Shaun Murison said.
Leading European markets were trading lower in late trade‚ following US markets softer despite upbeat data out of the eurozone.
Markit’s composite PMI for the 17-na- tion currency bloc rose to 52.2 in September‚ the highest reading in more than two years‚ while retail sales for August rose slightly more than expected‚ Dow Jones Newswire reported.
US stocks fell broadly as the government shutdown entered its third day and a reading on the US service sector missed expectations‚ the newswire reported.
At 5pm South African time‚ the Dow Jones industrial average was 0.83% weaker on concerns over continued political dysfunction in the lead-up to crucial talks to raise the debt ceiling later this month.
Stocks extended earlier losses after the Institute for Supply Management’s pur- chasing managers index for September missed projections‚ the newswire said.
The US labour department said the closely watched monthly jobs report would not be released today, the newswire reported.
On the JSE‚ Harmony led the downside in the gold index‚ closing 2.31% lower at R33.05‚ followed by AngloGold Ashanti‚ which ended 1.84% weaker at R129.35.
African Bank Investments led the gainers in the banking sector‚ rising 5.43% to R19.40. – BDlive