Johannesburg – The JSE eased on Friday‚ led by gold miners‚ after reaching yet another lifetime record high on Thursday.
At 12:37‚ the All Share [JSE:J203] index was down 0.40% at 40 440.69 points‚ with the Top 40 - (Tradeable) [JSE:J200] index giving up 0.44% to 35 991.14‚ while the gold index slid 2.95%.
“It is a necessary‚ temporary pullback. The All Share index has hit yet another ceiling that provides resistance to further gains‚” said Ian Cruickshanks‚ independent analyst.
The rand is looking better on the relative basis‚ providing an excuse for market players to take profits going into the weekend‚ said Ryan Wibberley‚ equity dealer at Investec Asset Management. The rand dipped below R9/$ after weakening to as much as R9.08/$ in intraday trade.
Elsewhere‚ leading European shares were mostly higher at noon‚ with UK’s FTSE 100 edging up 0.17%.
Among individual stocks on the JSE‚ Anglo American (AGL) lost 1.50% to R265.10‚ while AngloGold Ashanti (ANG) gave up 3.59% to R252.40‚ Gold Fields (GFI) shed 2% to R107.65 and Harmony Gold (HAR) sliding 3% to R64.99.
ArceloMittal SA (ACL) was down 2.45% to R34.22 but Nedbank (NED) lifted 2.25% to R195.60 while Group Five (GRF) was down 4.03% to R30.23.
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