After weakening initially on profit taking, the JSE recouped its losses on Tuesday morning to trade at a record high for the third straight day. Positive global sentiment, relative strength in commodities and weakness in the rand acted in concert to lift the local bourse, dealers said.
By 12.03pm, the all share index was off a marginal 0,02% at 17 390,71, but it
reached a highest ever 17 425,84 in late morning trade. Industrials were up
0,15% and the platinum mining index was a neither-here-nor-there 0,03% in the
black. Financials were flat (-0,01%). Resources retreated 0,18%, the gold mining index eased 0,13% and the banks index was 0,27% in the red.
The rand was bid at 6,77 per dollar from 6,75 when the JSE closed on Monday, while gold was quoted at $467,85 a troy ounce from $467,20/oz at the JSE’s last close.
A dealer said that the trend on the market was definitely bullish.
“There is not a lot of volume going through and guys are still buying. Guys who are long don’t want to sell and there is a shortage of stock,” he commented.
“Guys are looking at the Dow as well. Two or three weeks ago, people were saying that the Dow would drop to 7 000, but it keeps going up… The strong dollar is feeding the Dow, which is feeding our market. The weaker rand is also feeding the SA market so it is getting a big boost.”
While London-listed diversified resources group Anglo American was down four cents at R211,61, it earlier touched a best level since February 2002 of R212,20.
BHP Billiton lost 78 cents to R100,10, but petrochemicals group Sasol climbed 45 cents to R215,70.
Iron ore miner Kumba was up 1,12% or R1,14 to R103,15, having reached a record high of R104.
While AngloGold Ashanti shed R2,39 to R282,01, Gold Fields inched up five cents to R99,02 and Harmony was 19 cents to the good at R79,80. Gold Fields and Harmony earlier traded at 13-month highs of R99,75 and R80 respectively.
AngloPlat added one rand to R463 and while Impala Platinum was R2,91 in the red at R896, it earlier traded at a lifetime high of R903.
“Implats is one of the features — it went over R900 again. The strength is obviously on the back of the rand and the platinum price. But AngloPlat hasn’t really behaved in the same way and Implats just seems to be the stock of the moment. Buying of the stock from the states seems to be pushing it,” the dealer said.
On the all share industrial index, Highveld Steel & Vanadium soared 7,64% or R6,03 to an all-time high of R85.
After the close on Monday, Hiveld announced that it had generated headline earnings per share of 1 480,3 cents for the nine months to September 2005 compared with 563,7 cents in the previous comparative nine-month period.
The group also declared a second interim dividend of 430 cents per share.
Hiveld said it had decided to publish a second interim report after its major shareholder Anglo American announced in October it would seek to dispose of its 79% stake in the group.
Pulp and paper producer Sappi surged 3,62% or R2,60 to R74,50.
IT group Paracon skyrocketed 15,53% or 19 cents to R1,19 after it on Monday reported a 45% rise in its headline earnings per share (HEPS) for the year to end-September 2005 to 8,6 cents from 5,9 cents a year earlier. The group declared a distribution out of share premium of 6 cents per share, double the 3 cents distributed in 2004.
Media group Naspers leaped 4,02% or R4,10 to R106 and telecoms group Telkom gained 1,13% or R1,55 to R139.
Electronics group Reunert rallied 1,72% or 82 cents to R48,45. It earlier traded at a best ever R48,50 after it reported a 46% rise in diluted headline earnings per share to 401,2 cents for the year ended September 30 from 274 cents a year ago. Headline earnings per share rose to 406 cents from 277,5 cents before.
A final dividend of 170 cents per share was declared, up 42% from the previous 120 cents. Total dividends increased by 39% to 222 cents per share.
The I-Net Bridge consensus forecast was for HEPS of 368,7 cents and a dividend of 208,5 cents.
While Swiss-listed luxury goods group Richemont was 13 cents in the red at R26,62, its intraday high of R26,90 was its strongest since May 2002.
Cellular network MTN Group was down 25 cents at R57,75. Services group Bidvest shed 90 cents to R93 and construction group Murray & Roberts tumbled R2,03 or 40 cents to R19,30.
On the financial index, London-listed Old Mutual firmed 1,27% or 21 cents to R16,80, but Sanlam slipped 13 cents to R13,02.
Old Mutual shareholders on Monday approved four separate resolutions allowing the company to implement its R38-billion offer for Swedish insurer Skandia.
Microlender ABIL was up 1,3% or 30 cents to R23,30, having traded at a best level since 1999 of R23,50 following the release of solid results on Monday.
Nedbank was 2,17% or two rand in the black at R94, but Standard Bank slipped 1,05% or 77 cents to R72,50. – I-Net Bridge