The JSE Securities Exchange (JSE) was near a new high at midday on Monday after an extremely quiet morning’s trade. While the bourse was lifted by a weaker rand in early trade, it managed to maintain its strength despite a recovery in the currency.
By 11.58am, the all-share index was up 0,46% at 12 715 after touching a best-to-date 12 731,74 earlier in the morning. Resources rose 0,75%, with the gold- and platinum-mining indices gaining 1,78% and 0,65% respectively. Industrials climbed 0,3%, financials firmed 0,34% and the banks index was 0,32% better.
The rand was quoted at R5,65 per dollar from R5,63 when the JSE closed on Friday, while gold was quoted at $439,25 an ounce from $436,95/oz at the JSE’s last close.
“The market is desperately slow and the United Kingdom bank holiday is not helping,” a dealer lamented.
He continued that a number of stocks had gone ex-dividend and had therefore pulled back quite a bit, but overall the market was looking quite perky.
“It is holding its levels nicely, although volumes have been extremely thin,” he commented.
The dealer noted that not even R20-million had traded in any of the five most active shares. There was also no foreign influence yet and it appeared that prices were being marked up on low volumes.
On the resources index, London-listed Anglo American added 50 cents to R134 and BHP Billiton was 21 cents better at R66,21.
Petrochemicals group Sasol strengthened 1,65% or two rand to R123.
AngloGold Ashanti advanced 3,01% or R5,99 to R205, Gold Fields gained 1,44% or one rand to R70,50 and Harmony was 1,07% or 55 cents higher at R51,75.
AngloPlat picked up 1,93% or four rand to R211.
Cellular network operator MTN Group led industrials higher, jumping 1,7% or 74 cents to R44,24. Telkom was up 1,12% or R1,10 at R99,10.
Swiss-listed luxury goods group Richemont climbed 15 cents to R18,95, while London-listed brewer SABMiller was 55 cents in the black at R18,95.
Pulp and paper producer Sappi, however, was 65 cents softer at R82,35 after going ex-dividend of 170,03 cents per share.
Steel producer Ispat Iscor, which went ex-dividend of three rand per share, shed 4,12% or R2,70 to R62,80.
Cement producer PPC dived 8,96% or R25,55 to R259,45 after it went ex-dividend of R21.
Packaging group Nampak lost 2,88% or 45 cents to R15,20. Its shareholders will receive a dividend of 56,6 cents per share.
Retailer Edcon retreated 1,24% or R3,75 to R298,50 and Foschini fell 1,25% or 50 cents to R39,50. Edcon and Foschini went ex-dividend of R4,94 and 62 cents per share respectively.
On the financial index, banking group FirstRand firmed 2,02% or 27 cents to R13,62.
London-listed financial services group Old Mutual was up 10 cents at R14,40 and investment trust VenFin leaped 2,39% or 60 cents to R25,70.
On the downside, Sanlam dipped four cents to R12,96.
Standard Bank eased 32 cents to R65,48 and Nedcor weakened 70 cents to R77,10.
Metropolitan Holdings dived 8,53% or 93 cents to R9,97 after it went ex-dividend of one rand a share. — I-Net Bridge