OWN CORRESPONDENT, Johannesburg | Thursday 6.00pm
WEDNESDAY’S firm gains on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange were all but wiped out on Thursday as a tumbling gold price hit the gold board.
By close of trade the all share index had dipped 1,14% — knocked by the all gold index which lost 4,59% and the price of bullion fell to $258,05 an ounce. The financial index was also hard-hit — losing 1,65% — while the industrial board lost 0,76% on the day.
The heavyweight Alsi-40 index lost ground in line with the broader market, losing 1,26%.
Dealers said the underlying weakness on the market came after New York’s Dow Jones Industrial Average’s weakness overnight. The Dow closed down 126 points on the back of inflationary pressure as well as profit taking in the blue chip stocks.
The rand drifted slightly lower against the dollar on the day, trading at R6,13 to the dollar and R9,84 to the pound at around 4.30pm. In line with the Reserve Bank’s slow easing of liquidity, the repo rate inched down one basis point to 13,52%.
On Asian markets, Hong Kong had a winner of a day with its Hang Seng index leaping 3,16%. Tokyo markets did not share in the bear run, however, with the Nikkei Dow dipping 0,07%.
European markets were feeding off Wall Street’s cue and trading down as they moved into the afternoon session.