Spot gold on Monday burst through the $540-a-troy-ounce mark for the first time since March 1981 on fund-buying of the metal. At 9.45am, gold was quoted at $541,10/oz. The spot price of platinum on Monday climbed to $1 017,50 an ounce — its highest level since March 1980.

The JSE was higher at midday on Friday on the back of resources stocks, especially gold shares, as well as the weaker rand, equity brokers said. By 11.51am, the all share index had added 0,24%. Industrials declined 0,31% and financials fell 0,68% while the banks index was 1,25% in the red.

Spot platinum on Monday touched $1 000 an ounce for the first time since March 1980 on renewed fund-buying of the metal. A break through the $1 000/oz level for platinum should open up a move to $1 040/oz followed by $1 090/oz, technical analysts for JP Morgan wrote.

Global resources group BHP Billiton was looking at expanding the capacity of the Mozal aluminium smelter near Maputo by 250 000 tonnes per annum, BHP Billiton president for aluminium Alex Vanselow said during a conference call on Monday.

South African food and pharmaceutical group Tiger Brands on Thursday reported a 32% increase in its diluted headline earnings per share for the year to September 2005 to 975,4 cents from 737,3 cents previously. The group also declared a total dividend per share for the 2005 financial year of 500 cents.

South Africa’s second-largest gold-mining group, Gold Fields, on Monday announced that it will acquire Canadian-listed Bolivar Gold for $330-million (R2,2-billion) and merge the company with its international assets in Ghana and Australia. The board of directors of each company has resolved to approve the transaction.

Spot platinum on Wednesday afternoon surged to a fresh 25-and-a-half-year high of $990 a troy ounce on continued forceful fund-buying of the metal by the funds as well as Tuesday’s bullishly construed platinum group-metal review released by Johnson Matthey.

South Africa’s third-largest gold miner, Harmony Gold, on Wednesday announced that it has sold its remaining 26,5-million Gold Fields shares, constituting 5,4% of Gold Fields’ issued shares, at an average price of R93,228 per share. The company garnered R2,46-billion from the Gold Fields sale.

Spot platinum on Friday touched a fresh 25-year high of $961,50 a troy ounce on continued fund buying of the metal as well as strength in the rest of the commodity complex, traders said. At 1.30pm, platinum was quoted at $959/oz, down $1/oz from its previous close.

Trade union Solidarity on Thursday said it supports the International Labour Organisation’s argument that South African should have one definition of unemployment, since the existing two definitions have caused considerable confusion in the past.