Market Wrap: Naspers, Prosus fuel JSE’s firm start to the week, while rand takes a breather.

The JSE has had a strong start to the week, gaining 1.60% to end the day on 74,304.56 points as a global rebound in tech stocks and a firm showing in commodity heavyweights buoyed the bourse.

Tech heavyweights Naspers (+4.87%) and Prosus (+5.30%), which account for 12% of the main index, were the main drivers behind the gain, with Bytes Technology (+1.89%) adding its weight.

Among the big mining counters boosting the JSE were Implats (+5.46%), Thungela Resources (+5.24%), Angloplat (+4.19%), Gold Fields (+4.19%) and African Rainbow Minerals (+4.14%). Behind the gains were strong metal prices, with platinum gaining 0.7% and palladium nearly 2.5% at the close of the local session. Gold traded sideways for most of the day, struggling to end back up above $1,800. “The possibility of sanctions on Russia, the biggest palladium producer, has caused prices to rise substantially over the past couple of days,” comments TreasuryONE.

Sibanye-Stillwater jumped 3.38% after the miner signed a deal to buy Angloplat’s share in the Kroondal platinum operation – a move that will double the mine’s lifetime.

MTN’s massive 10.20% gain on its Nigerian performance added to the cheer. Fin24 reports MTN Nigeria’s Mobile Money (MoMo) service has garnered 9.4 million active users since launching in August 2019, a growth the company says provides a “solid foundation” for the upcoming establishment of the MoMo Payment Service Bank.Oil was also heading for its biggest January gain in at least 30 years as robust demand outpaced fresh supply and the Russian crisis continues to brew, reports Bloomberg. Sasol gained 0.59% as Brent Crude continues to trade above $91, on track for a 17% gain this month. 

Earlier today, the Department of Mineral Resources and Energy announced that local fuel prices will increase by 53c a litre for petrol and 79c for diesel due to the increase in oil prices and a weaker rand. With analysts and oil producers expecting prices to pass $100 a barrel, local motorists should brace for more price hikes and increased inflation.

On the forex front, the rand took a breather from the volatility seen over the past week. “This afternoon, the rand traded in a 10c band, with a bias towards risk-on sentiment helping EMs across the board. Last week’s sharp move above the R15.50-mark has now found a consolidation phase if we look at the price action today. This consolidation could help the rand trade in a broader R15.40 to R15.60 range for the next couple of days ahead of Friday’s NFP [US jobs data],” says TreasuryONE.

The unit was last trading at R15.42/$, 1.11% firmer than its overnight close in New York on Friday.

Alphamin was the biggest loser, plummeting almost 20% as the stock succumbed to profit-taking. Other losers included mining counters Exxaro (-3.66%), Glencore (-2.54%) and Anglo America (-2.29%).