Johannesburg - The JSE saw a rally in late trade on Thursday after the European Central Bank’s president Mario Draghi said the central bank “would do whatever it takes to protect the euro”.
“This announcement calmed concerns about Greece dropping out of the eurozone and we saw energetic buying into the euro and commodities‚” said Devin Shutte‚ market analyst at stockbrokerage Newstrading.
“The US came out with good data flashes with the number of US workers filing for unemployment much better than expected and positive durable goods order numbers‚ which helped keep sentiment bouyant. Markets are trading from one day to the next .. the ECB have not really said anything concrete‚ they have yet to make a concrete announcement‚” he said.
US durable goods orders for June rose 1.6%‚ beating views‚ as aircraft sales surged and the number of US workers filing for unemployment benefits fell for the fourth time in five weeks‚ suggesting the sluggish labour market was gaining steam. Initial jobless claims fell by 35‚000 to a seasonally adjusted 353‚000 in the week ended July 21‚far lower than economists' forecast of 380‚000 claims.
Europe's top central banker sparked a global rally in stocks after reassuring investors the continent's central bank would be vigilant about holding together the eurozone. ECB President Mario Draghi also indicated that the central bank may be ready to buy government bonds or embark on other measures to drive sovereign borrowing costs down as long as its actions remained within its mandate‚ Dow Jones Newswires reported.
The JSE All Share
[JSE:J203] index closed 0.64% higher at 34 288.98 points‚ while the Dow Jones Industrial Index was trading up 1.44% at 12 859.13 points.
Local big movers were Impala Platinum‚ up 267 cents‚ or 2.13%‚ at R128.00; Lonmin adding R2.39‚ or 2.72%‚ to R90.10 and Exxaro up R5.43‚ or 3‚33%‚ at R168.50.