The local bourse traded 1% higher on Wednesday after the JSE briefly halted trading for around 30 mins between 14:30 and 15:00 after “intermittent disconnects” and “inconsistent market data.”
The All Share Index ended 1.15% higher at 65,756 points.
On the international front, TreasuryONE reports that as much as 35% of Americans believe the US is already in a recession while over 70% believe it will be in one by the end of the year.
Recession fears have caused the market to run toward the US dollar with the greenback providing a safe haven while the currency market is turned upside down. Meanwhile, the euro has continued its run towards parity against the greenback and is currently trading at 1.02/$
On the local front, the rand lost another 1.5% today and is currently trading at R16.80/$.
“We are heading for the eighth day in a row of closing weaker. The R17.00 big figure is certainly in sight, and tonight we have the FOMC minutes from the previous meeting.
“The market is pricing a 75bps hike for later in July from the Fed, and the minutes will likely confirm this. Anything slightly more hawkish from the minutes will only add to the dollar-wrecking ball,” comments TreasuryONE.
On the commodity front, gold is down a further 1% today while Brent crude and WTI are below $100 a barrel for the first time since April “as the fears of recession and growth concerns overshadow the supply constraints,” says TreasuryONE.
In company news, Reuters reports German food delivery service Delivery Hero had its Berlin offices inspected by the European Commission and that it would co-operate fully.
JSE-listed Prosus owns almost 28% of Delivery Hero. Naspers and Prosus closed 1.51% and 0.10% lower.
