Johannesburg - The JSE lifted at the opening session on
Friday‚ in line with global markets‚ after China’s second-quarter gross domestic product (GDP) data
broadly met market expectations.
At 09:25 local time‚ the JSE All Share [JSE:J203] index was
up 0.49% at 33‚555.55 points‚ with resources gaining 0.71%‚ gold shares rising
1.35% and platinum counters climbing 0.45%.
Financials lifted 0.32%‚ banking stocks edged up 0.29% and
industrials were 0.41% firmer.
The rand was trading at R8.33 to the US dollar‚ from R8.36
at the JSE’s close on Thursday‚ while gold changed hands at $1 572.55 a troy
ounce from $1 559.05/oz at the JSE’s previous close and platinum was quoted at
$1 422.50/oz‚ from $1 410/oz previously.
“On the whole China’s GDP data wasn’t that great but at the
same it wasn’t as bad as some had been anticipating. We are‚ as a result‚ seeing
some buying interest coming back into the resources sector‚” said Devin Shutte‚
a trader at stockbrokerage Newstrading.
European stocks started off higher‚ with the London’s FTSE
100 up 0.41%.
China’s economy grew 7.6% in the April-June period‚ matching
the median estimate of 15 economists polled by Dow Jones Newswires. While much
of the focus was on the growth figures‚ industrial production and retail sales
figures also came out.
In Asia‚ stock markets were mostly higher but Japan’s Nikkei
average ended the session flat‚ while the Hang Seng index was up 0.36% by 09:25
SA time.
Meanwhile‚ the eurozone concerns remain in focus after
Moody’s Investors Service downgraded Italy’s government bond rating by two
notches‚ putting it just two notches above junk territory‚ and warned of the
possibility of further action. It pointed to the challenges Italy and the wider
region face in tackling the debt crisis.