SARAH BULLEN in Johannesburg | Friday 5.30pm.
LOCAL stock toasted the end to a turbulent week by ending firmer on Friday, leaving gold pundits smirking as the all gold index gained 11,71% on the day.
The Johannesburg Stock Exchange’s rise came despite an overnight fall in the New York stock market which was expected to increase speculative attacks on emerging markets on Friday. Dealers said that there was a high demand at lower level for stock with marginal gold exposure, although investors were not for gold stock exclusively.
Although the volume trade was relatively high for the week at R1,3-billion, dealers said there were not a lot of net big buys with investors nibbling rather at low priced stock. Investors are keeping a cautious eye on the market with investors going for value and trying to increase the net value of portfolios that have taken a severe knock this week. “The general response now to a bull run is ‘don’t believe’,” a dealer said.
Financial stock took a bit of a knock, with the index losing 2,17%, 149 points, to close the week at 6716. Financials the world over are under pressure, dealers said, with most of the Dow’s overnight fall as a result in a fall in JP Morgan and American Express. Banks are feeling the weight of exposure to foreign goverments and loans in the volatile environment, dealers said.
Bonds gained some ground on the back of the firmer sentiment with the R150 gaining ten basis points to close the week at a 18,78% yield. The rand was unchanged against the dollar, trading at R6,21 at 4.30pm.