Stocks up as Steinhoff surges

Johannesburg - South African stocks rose 0.38% on Thursday as shares of Africa’s largest furniture retailer Steinhoff surged after it said it expects sharply higher H1 earnings and plans to list its European unit.

Shares of FirstRand, South Africa’s second-largest bank, shot up 3.3% after it said it expects an increase in first-half earnings, further lifting sentiment about corporate earnings in Africa’s largest economy.

“Steinhoffs had a significant impact on trade,” said Investec head of stockbroking in Johannesburg Bernhard Grobler.

There were just over 10 million trades in Steinhoff shares, double its average daily volume.

“Although the dark clouds have not dissipated I think investors are becoming more optimistic. The local market earnings season is in full swing and there has been very little to disappoint,” Grobler said

The blue-chip Top 40 - (Tradeable) [JSE:J200] index rose 0.38% to 30 402.63. Earlier this month it hit its highest since mid-2008.

The broader All Share [JSE:J203] index gained 0.3% to 34 108.20. At the beginning of February the index hit a lifetime high of 34 460.57.

Steinhoff surged 4.59% to R26.43. The company said after the close of trade that it expects first-half earnings to rise as much as 50%, helped by the inclusion of earnings from unit Conforama Holdings, which it acquired in March 2011, and a more favourable euro-rand exchange rate.

Steinhoff also said it could list its European business in London, Paris or Frankfurt and raise as much as $2bn in the process.

FirstRand also rose on expectations of better earnings. The company said diluted normalised earnings per share for the six months to December 2011 were expected to increase by around 25%.

Impala Platinum, the world’s second largest platinum group, was also a major mover. The stock added 3.22% after falling 1.25% on Wednesday.

Grobler said the platinum producer moved on the prospect of a solution to the protracted illegal strike at its Rustenburg operations and on market speculation that it could snap up some of Anglo American Platinum’s assets should Anglo American decide to sell.

Anglo American said last week that it would review the performance of its platinum subsidiary, sparking talk of its possible exit from the business..

Trade was active, with 134 million shares changing hands, according to preliminary data from the Johannesburg exchange. That compared to last year’s daily average of 256 million shares.

Advancers totalled 139 decliners 129.