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Rustenburg - The Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union (Amcu) on Thursday rejected a 9% wage offer from leading platinum producers Anglo American Platinum (Amplats) [JSE:AMS] and Lonmin [JSE:LON], ensuring a week of industrial action continues.
A crowd of miners at a mass meeting near Lonmin's Marikana mine reacted with boos and jeers when told about the offer, a fraction of the R12 500 a month Amcu has been seeking.
A union official at Amplats, the world's top producer of the precious metal, said the mood there was also sour.
"The miners were angry about the offer," Amcu branch manager Siphamandla Makhanya told Reuters.
The strike in the platinum belt has also impacted No 2 producer Impala Platinum Holdings [JSE:IMP]. In all, the strike has hit around 40% of the global supply of platinum, used in catalytic converters in cars.
The impact on a major source of South African foreign exchange has contributed to a major sell-off in the rand, which plunged to a five-year low of R11.38 against the dollar on Wednesday, despite an interest rate hike by the Reserve Bank.
Amplats shares have held on to some of the company's 2% gains on Thursday despite the Amcu snub, while Impala Platinum gave up 0.52% and Lonmin 1.36%.
A crowd of miners at a mass meeting near Lonmin's Marikana mine reacted with boos and jeers when told about the offer, a fraction of the R12 500 a month Amcu has been seeking.
A union official at Amplats, the world's top producer of the precious metal, said the mood there was also sour.
"The miners were angry about the offer," Amcu branch manager Siphamandla Makhanya told Reuters.
The strike in the platinum belt has also impacted No 2 producer Impala Platinum Holdings [JSE:IMP]. In all, the strike has hit around 40% of the global supply of platinum, used in catalytic converters in cars.
The impact on a major source of South African foreign exchange has contributed to a major sell-off in the rand, which plunged to a five-year low of R11.38 against the dollar on Wednesday, despite an interest rate hike by the Reserve Bank.
Amplats shares have held on to some of the company's 2% gains on Thursday despite the Amcu snub, while Impala Platinum gave up 0.52% and Lonmin 1.36%.
