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Johannesburg - The JSE has booked its biggest daily percentage decline in more than a month on Wednesday, tracking global markets as anxiety from a sell-off in global government bonds spread to equities.
US and European bonds were sold off due to a stand-off between Greece and its lenders as well as worse than expected US private jobs data.
That led to sell-off in gold and platinum but was not enough to drag down Brent crude and iron ore.
Shares in Africa's biggest gold company AngloGold Ashanti [JSE:ANG] fell 3.6% to R135.50 while smaller rival Gold Fields lost 6.4% to R50.96.
In the biggest daily percentage drop in six weeks, the benchmark Top-10 index shed 1.25% to 47 707 and the broader All-Share index fell 1.33% to 53 848.
"We've had some terrible numbers out of the States in the last couple of days, and I think that contributes to unsettling the market," said Paul Chakaduka, a trader at Global Trader.
On the flip side, Calgro M3 [JSE:CGR] Holdings jumped 6.8% after the firm flagged a 32% jump in full-year headline earnings.
Petrochemicals firm Sasol [JSE:SOL], which makes fuel from coal, tracked a rise in the oil price by adding 0.98% to R486. Similarly a climb in the iron ore price saw shares in Kumba Iron Ore [JSE:KIO] add 0.9% to R185.76.
Trading was active with 233 million shares changing hands, compared to last year's daily average of 183 million.
