The JSE eked out a 0.13% gain to extend its winning streak as mining heavyweights continue to shine.
The All Share index ended the week on a four-week high of 65,242.61 points, with Northam Platinum notching up 14.07% as platinum and palladium soared 4.7% and 5.5% respectively.
Sibanye Stillwater, the most traded stock with 25 million shares changing hands, gained 9.60%, with Implats 9.31%, Angloplat 6.48% and Royal Bafokeng 5.16% following suit.
ArcelorMittal SA added 0.3% to the previous session’s 6.47% gain as the steelmaker slapped a surcharge on some products due to surging power prices. Kumba Iron Ore added 0.47%, Anglo American 1.39% and BHP 0.94%. Exxaro bucked the trend, losing 2.26%.
Sasol added 1.2% as Brent crude spurted over $83 a barrel as a global energy crisis boost demand amid tight supplies. Other energy counters were mixed, with Renergen gaining 1.17%, while Thungela Resources lost 5.79%.
Naspers and subsidiary Prosus gave up some gains from the previous session, dipping 1.73% and 0.28% respectively despite a 6.5% jump in the last two days in Chinese tech giant Tencent, in which the duo have 29% exposure. Tencent has been a key victim of China’s unprecedented crackdown on its tech sector, with its shares down nearly 40% from a record high in January, but the company stands to benefit from potential unlocking of game patents, reports Bloomberg.
Among the losers were financial services and healthcare counters, with Santam (-4.47%), Sanlam (-3.13%), Absa (-2.62%), Netcare (-4.10%) and Life Healthcare (-2.75%) all losing ground.
In the currency markets, the rand traded on the front foot immediately after the release of disappointing September non-farm payrolls, which saw the US jobs market adding a paltry 194,000 jobs versus the 500,000 expected amid sliding Covid cases and the expiry of enhanced unemployment benefits. The unemployment rate fell 4.8% against an expected 5.1%. The local unit firmed to as much as R14.78 against the US dollar before giving up gains to last trade at R14.92/$.
“We seem to find a sense of comfort around the R14.90 level at the moment, with risk-off events fading during the latter part of the week,” comments TreasuryONE.
A weaker rand and higher fuel prices are likely to stoke inflation in the next couple of months, which could put pressure on stock market prices.
Indicators as at 17:00
Currencies
USDZAR 14.9125
EURUSD 1.1572
EURZAR 17.2515
GBPUSD 1.3636
GBPZAR 20.3285
AUDZAR 10.9067
CADZAR 11.9656
CNYZAR 2.3133
ZARJPY 7.5116
CHFZAR 16.0872
USDAOA 596.80
Bonds and equities
R186 7.91%
US 10 Year 1.60%
JSE 0.28%
FTSE 0.26%
S&P 500 -0.11%
Commodities
Gold $1 757.56
Plat $1 015.78
Plad $2 052.65
Rhod $14 290.00
Irid $4 890.00
Ruth $648.00
Copp $9 246.75
Brent $83.12
Iron Ore 62.5% $118.10
Coal API4 $228.00
Gold ZAR R26 209.61
Plat ZAR R15 147.82
