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Johannesburg, Feb 2 (I-Net Bridge) - The JSE was up at the close on
Thursday, as the market's underlying bullish tone continued to drive
trade higher.
A local trader said, "It's difficult to tell if the tone is a result of expectation that a deal would be made in Europe."
The All Share [JSE:J203] has risen 7% in January alone which was "absolutely fierce".
The trader did warn that even though the market was lifting significantly on the underlying tone caution was warranted in terms of trading it.
The rand has also displayed a significant move with a shift of just over 5% during the course of January.
At 17:00, the JSE all-share index closed up 0.68% at 34,371.50. An intraday record was set for the all-share (34,460.57), industrials (36,166.13) and banks (45,186.45).
Platinum declined 1.66%, however resources moved 0.99% higher and gold stocks were static (0.02%).
Banks generated 0.90%, financials added 0.75% and industrials collected 0.40%.
The rand was bid at 7.65 to the dollar from 7.68 at the JSE's close on Wednesday. Gold was quoted at US$1,750.48 a troy ounce from US$1,745.03/oz at the JSE's previous close, while platinum was at US$1,625/oz, from US$1,611/oz before.
Dow Jones Newswires reported that US stocks were mixed after a better-than-expected reading on weekly jobless claims buoyed investor sentiment one day before a key monthly employment report.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average was off 0.12% at the time of the JSE close.
Stock futures edged into positive territory before the open after initial unemployment claims decreased by 12,000 to 367,000 last week, slightly better than expectations. Economists surveyed by Dow Jones Newswires expected jobless claims to decline to 370,000 from last week's 377,000.
"It's all about the trend. Before the end of the season, we be could be down close to 350,000, which is kind of a magic level that tells you that we really are in a healthier labour market," said Michael Shaoul, chief executive at brokerage firm Oscar Gruss. Investors will be watching for Friday's release of nonfarm payrolls and unemployment rate.
Meanwhile, data showed US workers' productivity rose at a slower pace in the final three months of 2011 while labour costs edged higher. Nonfarm business productivity rose at a 0.7% annual rate in October through to December, in line with economists' forecasts. Unit labour costs rose by 1.2%, higher than the expected 0.8% rise.
European markets inched higher while talks between Greece and its private creditors over a debt restructuring continued. Meanwhile, Spain raised slightly more than its planned amount of cash in a government bond sale and at lower borrowing costs than at previous auctions.
In deal news, Xstrata and Glencore International announced that they were in talks for a merger that would create the world's third-largest mining company and dramatically alter the industry's landscape.
A local trader said, "It's difficult to tell if the tone is a result of expectation that a deal would be made in Europe."
The All Share [JSE:J203] has risen 7% in January alone which was "absolutely fierce".
The trader did warn that even though the market was lifting significantly on the underlying tone caution was warranted in terms of trading it.
The rand has also displayed a significant move with a shift of just over 5% during the course of January.
At 17:00, the JSE all-share index closed up 0.68% at 34,371.50. An intraday record was set for the all-share (34,460.57), industrials (36,166.13) and banks (45,186.45).
Platinum declined 1.66%, however resources moved 0.99% higher and gold stocks were static (0.02%).
Banks generated 0.90%, financials added 0.75% and industrials collected 0.40%.
The rand was bid at 7.65 to the dollar from 7.68 at the JSE's close on Wednesday. Gold was quoted at US$1,750.48 a troy ounce from US$1,745.03/oz at the JSE's previous close, while platinum was at US$1,625/oz, from US$1,611/oz before.
Dow Jones Newswires reported that US stocks were mixed after a better-than-expected reading on weekly jobless claims buoyed investor sentiment one day before a key monthly employment report.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average was off 0.12% at the time of the JSE close.
Stock futures edged into positive territory before the open after initial unemployment claims decreased by 12,000 to 367,000 last week, slightly better than expectations. Economists surveyed by Dow Jones Newswires expected jobless claims to decline to 370,000 from last week's 377,000.
"It's all about the trend. Before the end of the season, we be could be down close to 350,000, which is kind of a magic level that tells you that we really are in a healthier labour market," said Michael Shaoul, chief executive at brokerage firm Oscar Gruss. Investors will be watching for Friday's release of nonfarm payrolls and unemployment rate.
Meanwhile, data showed US workers' productivity rose at a slower pace in the final three months of 2011 while labour costs edged higher. Nonfarm business productivity rose at a 0.7% annual rate in October through to December, in line with economists' forecasts. Unit labour costs rose by 1.2%, higher than the expected 0.8% rise.
European markets inched higher while talks between Greece and its private creditors over a debt restructuring continued. Meanwhile, Spain raised slightly more than its planned amount of cash in a government bond sale and at lower borrowing costs than at previous auctions.
In deal news, Xstrata and Glencore International announced that they were in talks for a merger that would create the world's third-largest mining company and dramatically alter the industry's landscape.
