The JSE was marginally firmer just after noon on Tuesday after a choppy morning session. While the market spiked to a new high just before the London opening, lack of direction from offshore and volatile metals prices were creating a lot of uncertainty.
At 12.05pm, the all-share index was up 0,18% at 25 240,07 after touching a highest-ever level of 25 287,56.
Industrials and financials were 0,5% and 0,45% firmer respectively, while the banks index was 0,64% better. The gold-mining index had climbed 0,4% and the platinum-mining index had jumped 1,13%, but the resources index was 0,3% in the red.
The rand was bid at 7,24 per dollar from 7,21 when the JSE closed on Monday, while gold was quoted at $625,45 a troy ounce from $619,90/oz at the JSE’s last close. Platinum was quoted at $1 140/oz, down $6,50 from its level at the JSE’s last close.
A dealer said that it had been a very choppy morning’s trade.
“The market went through a bit of turmoil. Safex [the futures market] was closed for half of the day yesterday [Monday] due to technical problems and that hurt transactions. It is still impacting us now. People are uncertain about where the market should be … It created a void and people are still dazed by that void.”
The dealer added that from when the market closed on Friday until Safex opened at 12.45pm on Monday, the market went up 250 points. Any futures players who were short of the market were hurt badly.
“Today [Tuesday] world markets are mixed and because of that we are not getting much direction,” he continued. “There have also been huge swings in commodity prices and this is compounding the market’s unpredictability.”
In morning trade, London-listed diversified resources group Anglo American lost R1,40 to R344,40. BHP Billiton weakened 1,41% or R1,85 to R129. Both were down in the United Kingdom.
Petrochemicals group Sasol dipped 89 cents to R232,01, but coal and industrial minerals group Exxaro rallied 1,98% or R1,05 to R54,20.
While AngloGold Ashanti advanced 1,78% or R5,80 to R331,90, Harmony surrendered 1,23% or R1,20 to R96,75. Gold Fields was up a neither-here-nor-there three cents at R123,83.
AngloPlat added R7 to R903 and Impala improved 1,16% or R2,20 to R192,20. The counters earlier traded at record highs of R910,01 and R196 respectively. Northam notched up 2,17% or R1,10 to R51,80.
“Platinum stocks are in vogue,” the dealer commented. “Yesterday [Monday] we had a trading update from Northam which helped there.”
Northam said on Monday morning that it expects its interim earnings and headline earnings per share for the six months ended December 31 to be between 265 and 285 cents — more than double the 130,1 cents per share for the comparable period in the prior year.
Lonmin, however, lost 1,99% or R8,38 to R413. It traded as low as R400 after it said that it would have to rebuild its Number 1 furnace following a leak announced in December.
Among industrials, Swiss-listed luxury goods group Richemont rose 22 cents to R41,31. While London-listed brewer SABMiller eased 30 cents to R167,70, it earlier touched a record high of R168,01.
Brand management group Barloworld was bolstered 1,3% or R2,22 to R173,22 and services group Bidvest strengthened 1,09% or R1,50 to R139,49.
Media group Naspers jumped 2,48% or R4 to R165.
Retailer Pick ‘n Pay rang up 2,66% or 90 cents to R34,70.
Lewis leaped to a record high of R67,51 and was last quoted at R66,51, up 3,12% or R2,01 on the day.
Lewis said earlier that its sales growth in the quarter ended January 5 was consistent with the trend reported for the half-year ended September 2006.
Merchandise sales for the quarter increased by 15% compared with the corresponding quarter last year, with like for like merchandise sales growth of 11%.
Construction group Murray & Roberts surged 3,99% or R1,65 to R43. It traded at a record high of R44,60 on Tuesday morning following news late on Monday that it was leading the consortium that had been named preferred bidder for the Green Point Stadium in Cape Town.
On the financial front, Sanlam strengthened 1,22% or 24 cents to R19,99.
Health and life insurer Discovery was up 2,02% or 60 cents at an all-time high of R30,25.
Standard Bank climbed 49 cents to R100, FirstRand firmed 15 cents to R23,25 and Absa added 1,53% or R1,99 to a record R131,99. Nedbank was R1,19 in the black at R136,20.
Standard Bank earlier reached an historic high of R100,99.
Specialist bank Investec was 1,12% or R1,04 to the good at R93,76 after trading at a new high of R94,35. — I-Net Bridge