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Johannesburg - The JSE went into negative territory at its opening on Friday, tracking weaker markets in Asia, while commodity stocks in Australia weighed on the local bourse, a dealer said.
By 09:13 local time, the JSE all-share index lost 0.47%, with platinum miners dropping 0.73%, gold miners falling 1.07% and resources slipping 0.90%. Banks lost 0.24%, industrials eased 0.25% and financials shed 0.15%.
The rand was bid at R6.73 to the dollar from R6.72 at the JSE's close on Thursday. Gold was quoted at $1 484.96 a troy ounce from $1,488.43/oz at the JSE's previous close, while platinum was at $1 791.70/oz, from $1 771.00/oz previously.
A local trader said: "Asia is negative and although futures are slightly positive, commodity stocks in Australia, such as BHP Billiton, are negative, which has dragged down local stocks." The dealer said that the market would be relatively quiet ahead of US non-farm payrolls data expected at 14:30.
Dow Jones Newswires reported that Asian stock markets were mostly lower on Friday, with commodity-related stocks battered after oil and metals prices dropped sharply on Thursday following weaker-than-expected US jobless claims data.
Japan's Nikkei Stock Average lost 1.6%, the Hang Seng Index was down 0.3%, the Kospi declined 1.3%, but the Shanghai Composite added 0.2%.
Analysts were mixed on whether the price declines marked the start of a sustained downtrend for oil and commodities.
Commodity prices stabilised in early European trading on Friday after their tumble on Thursday, which boosted the dollar but sent equity prices sharply lower, led by resource stocks.
Economists surveyed by Dow Jones Newswires estimate the US economy has added 185 000 jobs in April, after 216 000 in March. April's unemployment rate is expected to hold at 8.8%.
Also on the market's agenda, European Central Bank (ECB) president Jean-Claude Trichet gave no clear signal on Thursday about when future hikes might occur, even as he noted upward inflationary pressure due to commodity prices.
"We don't know whether the ECB is going to raise rates in June or July," said Koen De Leus, strategist at KBC Securities. "The latest producer price index for the euro zone was pretty high. They will have to raise rates if they want to keep their credibility," he added.
Other economic data due on Friday includes UK producer prices at 08:30 GMT, followed by Germany's industrial production data, due at 12:00.
By 09:13 local time, the JSE all-share index lost 0.47%, with platinum miners dropping 0.73%, gold miners falling 1.07% and resources slipping 0.90%. Banks lost 0.24%, industrials eased 0.25% and financials shed 0.15%.
The rand was bid at R6.73 to the dollar from R6.72 at the JSE's close on Thursday. Gold was quoted at $1 484.96 a troy ounce from $1,488.43/oz at the JSE's previous close, while platinum was at $1 791.70/oz, from $1 771.00/oz previously.
A local trader said: "Asia is negative and although futures are slightly positive, commodity stocks in Australia, such as BHP Billiton, are negative, which has dragged down local stocks." The dealer said that the market would be relatively quiet ahead of US non-farm payrolls data expected at 14:30.
Dow Jones Newswires reported that Asian stock markets were mostly lower on Friday, with commodity-related stocks battered after oil and metals prices dropped sharply on Thursday following weaker-than-expected US jobless claims data.
Japan's Nikkei Stock Average lost 1.6%, the Hang Seng Index was down 0.3%, the Kospi declined 1.3%, but the Shanghai Composite added 0.2%.
Analysts were mixed on whether the price declines marked the start of a sustained downtrend for oil and commodities.
Commodity prices stabilised in early European trading on Friday after their tumble on Thursday, which boosted the dollar but sent equity prices sharply lower, led by resource stocks.
Economists surveyed by Dow Jones Newswires estimate the US economy has added 185 000 jobs in April, after 216 000 in March. April's unemployment rate is expected to hold at 8.8%.
Also on the market's agenda, European Central Bank (ECB) president Jean-Claude Trichet gave no clear signal on Thursday about when future hikes might occur, even as he noted upward inflationary pressure due to commodity prices.
"We don't know whether the ECB is going to raise rates in June or July," said Koen De Leus, strategist at KBC Securities. "The latest producer price index for the euro zone was pretty high. They will have to raise rates if they want to keep their credibility," he added.
Other economic data due on Friday includes UK producer prices at 08:30 GMT, followed by Germany's industrial production data, due at 12:00.
