Johannesburg - The JSE closed weaker on Tuesday as stocks retreated from their mildly firmer close on Monday.
Rand hedge stocks benefited from the weaker local unit, which saw Mondi Ltd [JSE:MND] and Mondi Plc [JSE:MNP] gain 2.68% and 2.29% respectively.
Sappi [JSE:SAP] and Richemont [JSE:CFR] also managed to firm by 1.64% and 0.79% respectively. Naspers [JSE:NPN] closed 1.3% firmer to close at R3 078.71 per share, but this was not enough to lift the blue-chip index.
On the broader index, Net 1 UEPS [JSE:NT1] and Clientele [JSE:CLI] jumped 13.97% and 4.17% respectively to end among the day’s biggest gainers.
Rebosis Property Fund [JSE:REB] was buoyed by the release of its earnings results for the six months ended February 28, which saw the stock closing gaining 3.13% to close at R8.25 per share.
Balwin Properties [JSE:BWN] also managed to record gains of 1.69% to close at R6.00 per share.
On of the day’s biggest losers, ArcelorMittal [JSE:ACL] came under significant pressure following the announcement of the resignation of its chief financial officer.
The stock nose-dived to reach a session low of R2.11 per share before rebounding to eventually close at R2.42 per share, down 13.57% for the day. EOH Holdings [JSE:EOH] came under significant pressure to close 6.49% weaker at R36.00 per share.
Retailer Mr Price [JSE:MRP] slid by 5.33% to close at R258.00 per share, while Impala Platinum [JSE:IMP] tumbled by 7.56% to close at R19.80 per share.
Kumba Iron Ore [JSE:KIO] and Sibanye-Stillwater [JSE:SGL] lost 4.42% and 3.21% respectively, while Discovery [JSE:DSY] and MMI Holdings [JSE:MMI] shed 2.80% and 2.21% respectively.
The blue-chip JSE Top-40 Index eventually closed 0.29% weaker, while the broader JSE All-Share Index lost 0.52%. There weren’t many positives to take note of, as all the major indices closed in the red.
The Financials Index lost 0.82%, while the Resources and Industrials Indices shed 0.51% and 0.08% respectively.
The US dollar strengthened significantly against a basket of major currencies, as depicted by the US dollar index which climbed above 93 index points.
The rand declined to a session low of R12.63/$ and looked set for more weakness ahead of President Donald Trump’s decision on the Iran deal, expected at 20.00 CAT. The local unit was trading at R12.62/$ at 17.00 CAT.
As a result of the US dollar strength, gold slid to a session low of $1306.14 per ounce before it retraced briefly to trade at $1307.31/oz at 17.00 CAT.
Platinum was range-bound between $908/oz and $914/oz, and at 17.00 CAT it was trading at $909.40/oz. Palladium slipped to a session low of $966.68/oz earlier, but managed to recoup those losses to trade at $971.80/oz at 17.00 CAT.
Brent Crude traded softer to reach a session low of $75.17 per barrel, as caution engulfed the market ahead of Trump’s decision on Iran. The commodity was trading at $75.36/barrel just after the JSE close.
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