JSE lower on commodities

Johannesburg - The JSE endured a topsy-turvy afternoon on Friday, ending lower amid weaker commodities affected by a softer rand.

At 17:00 the JSE all share index had given up 0.50%, with resources shedding 1.50%, gold counters ended 2.12% lower and platinum miners dropped 2.36%.

Banks declined 0.12%, but financials were flat, 0.04% higher, and industrials gained 0.36%.

The rand was bid at 7.46 to the dollar from 7.39 when the JSE closed on Thursday. Gold was quoted at $1 012.02 a troy ounce from $1 013.40/oz at the JSE's last close, and platinum was at $1 338/oz, from $1 333/oz at its previous close.

A local trader said: "The market has been all over the place this afternoon. We have had very little data out from the US to provide clear direction, but the rand is probably the story of the day, affecting commodities.

"We also had a close-out on futures yesterday which saw a lot of volume, close on R21bn, compared with today where we are pushing 12, so volume has been a bit thin.

"The rand, however, was the big factor on the market today," he said.

Dow Jones Newswires reported that US blue chip stocks inched higher on Friday morning, helped by analyst upgrades, options-related buying and bargain hunting after a rare market setback in the previous session.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 16 points, or 0.2%, at 9 800.

The Dow is coming off an eight-point decline on Thursday, but it has generally been on a roll, posting gains in eight of the last 10 full sessions.

Traders and money managers remain optimistic that the US economy is improving, though the market's daily gains have often been incremental, reflecting caution that a full-blown recovery hasn't arrived quite yet.

"The market is in a mode where investors are saying, 'prove it'," said Deutsche Bank strategist Binky Chadha. "That attitude should remain in place for awhile, but at the same time we are gradually getting some better data."

- I-Net Bridge