JSE flat on weak global markets
Oct 13 2009 18:03
Johannesburg - The JSE ended flat on Tuesday on
the back of slightly weaker world markets as market players took a bit of
profit after recent good moves and continued to eye company earnings in the
US, a local trader said.
At 17:00 the JSE all share index had edged up 0.16%, with gold miners
collecting 0.86%, resources inching 0.13% higher and platinum miners up
0.58%.
Banks and financials firmed 1.53% and 1.07% respectively, while
industrials eased 0.28%.
At 16:41, the rand was bid at 7.35 to the dollar from 7.30 just before
the JSE closed on Monday. Gold was at US$1,058.30 a troy ounce from
$1 056.78/oz at the JSE's last close, and platinum was at $1 352/oz,
from $1 336.50/oz at its previous close.
"We had a flattish close today. Markets have run for about six days and
to see some profit taking is perfectly normal. Europe turned negative and
the Dow is also down," the trader said.
"Also, Johnson & Johnson came out with results that were in line with
market expectations, and as we know Alcoa set a very high benchmark and the
market expects more.
"There are some big companies still to release their results tonight and
for the rest of the week. We will eye those and see what happens. Anything
in line with or below expectations will see some profit taking on the
market," he said.
Dow Jones Newswires reports that US stocks slipped on Tuesday amid
earnings news and weakness in the financial sector, which faced bearish
analyst comments and worries about regulatory scrutiny.
The Djia was recently off 52 points, or 0.5%, at 9 833.73, hurt by a 2.8%
decline in Johnson & Johnson even after the pharmaceuticals giant posted a
1.1% rise in third-quarter net profit, beating analysts' expectations.
Many traders had already placed many of their bets on a strong earnings
report prior to the actual release, with Johnson & Johnson shares up nearly
3% for the month coming into Tuesday's action.
Dow component Intel was up 0.3% in recent action ahead of its report due
after the closing bell. The chipmaker was up more than 4% for the month-to-
date coming into Tuesday's trading.
Other indices also headed lower on Tuesday. The S&P 500 was off 0.6%,
hurt by declines in every sector. Its financial sector recently was down
1.6%. The Nasdaq Composite Index was down 0.2%.
Bank of America fell 0.2% after a Securities and Exchange Commission
spokesperson said the bank agreed to a broad waiver of the attorney-client
privilege in the investigation into its acquisition of Merrill Lynch last
year.
Goldman Sachs Group shares fell 1.7%. The company, which reports results
on Thursday, was downgraded to neutral from "buy" by bank analyst Meredith
Whitney.
Some market veterans remain nervous about what may lie ahead.
The Djia had last weakened 0.34%.
- I-Net Bridge
