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Johannesburg - Limited gains by the Resources index were the only highlight of trade on the JSE on Monday morning, which seems to be in limbo in response to a stronger rand.
The major indices hardly moved on Monday morning as almost major shares gained or lost very little.
The rand traded at only R13.26 to the dollar, as new political tensions in North Korea, which fired another missile in the sea close to Japan, dented the dollar.
By mid-morning the All-share index was only 0.27% lower at 53 919 points, while the Top 40 index traded 0.19% softer at 44 339 points. The Industrial index moved 0.34% lower, while the Financial index was 0.40% softer.
The Resources sector index however made limited gains despite the stronger rand, due to firmer commodity prices led higher by the oil price. By mid-morning the Resources index was 0.34% up.
BHP Biliton [JSE:BIL] led the resources sector higher and at mid-morning traded 1.13% up at R180.37. The company changes its name back to BHP on Monday, to erase one of the last reminders of a merger 16 years ago that created the world's biggest mining house.
Anglo American [JSE:AGL] traded 0.31% higher at R180.37 and Glencore [JSE:GLN] was 0.59% stronger at R49.56.
Commodity prices were supported by a higher oil price, after Saudi Arabia and Russia said supply cuts need to last into 2018, a step towards keeping an Opec-led deal to support prices in place longer than originally agreed.
Oil rose more than 2% on Monday to $52 a barrel but Sasol [JSE:SOL], whose income is directly related to the oil price, was 0.46% softer at R405.50.
There was some corporate activity in the telecommunications sector and Vodacom [JSE:VOD] was at one stage more than 1% higher on news that the Vodafone Group is selling a $2.6bn stake in Kenya’s Safaricom to Vodacom.
The all-share deal will transfer a 35% stake in Safaricom to Vodacom in return for stock in the Johannesburg-based unit, raising the parent’s stake in its South African business to about 70%.
The transaction gives Vodacom greater access to products such as M-Pesa, Safaricom’s fast-growing mobile banking service. It also concentrates Vodafone’s African holdings more fully into Vodacom, which at mid-morning was 0.83% firmer at R153.76 after earlier trading as high as R154.75.
Telkom [JSE:TKG], which traded at a 52-week high of R79.90 on Friday, moved to R80.20 in early trade but then lost momentum and at mid-morning was 1.71% softer at R75.83. MTN [JSE:MTN] lost 0.88% to R119.97.
Naspers [JSE:NPN] was only 0.04% higher at R2 729.62, but that was enough to register another all-time high. Ricchemont [JSE:CFR], which traded sharply lower on Friday on weaker-than-expected results, was only 0.06% higher at R108.40.
