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Volatile JSE flirts with new all-time high

Johannesburg - Share prices on the JSE on Monday morning again flirted with a new high for the year, after the market dropped back sharply on Friday afternoon following new highs set in morning trade.

The major indices were pulled higher again on Monday by Naspers [JSE:NPN], by far the biggest share on the JSE, which traded at a new all-time high.

The All-share index was 0.57% higher at 54 472 points at mid-morning, just below the 52-week high of 54 549 points set in May this year. On Friday morning it was comfortably above that mark, but then dropped on the back of a strong rand.

The rand also played a role in Monday morning trade, as it dropped back to R12.95 to the dollar. On Friday the currency at one stage was as strong as R12.86 to the greenback, which is still under severe pressure.

The biggest movers on Monday were in the Industrial index, which includes many of the big dual-listed shares which earn most of their income abroad and earn more in rand if the local unit is weaker.

The Top 40 index was however on a new 52-week high as the index, which includes most of the dual-listed shares, gained 0.69% to a new high of 48 129 points. In March this year it was still as low as 44 304 points before shooting up to a 52-week high of 48 046 points in May. It then dropped  more than 7% to 44 512 points in less than three weeks after the sacking of Pravin Gordhan as minister of finance, before starting to recover again.

The Industrial index was also marginally higher than the previous 52-week high of 82 839 points at mid-morning, gaining 0.90% to 82 898 points. The index, which was on 72 360 points on January 3, is 14.5% higher for the year to date on Monday's level.

These strong gains however had very little to do with the South African economy and were mainly a result of a weaker rand at certain times as well as foreign markets, which are currently on two-year highs. The dual-listed shares are listed on European makets.

One of the big drivers of the Industrial index is Naspers, which comprises its biggest part. It has gained 39.3% for the year to date on the back of gains of more than 50% in the share price of Tencent, the Chinese internet giant of which Naspers owns 34%. Tencent represents the biggest part of Naspers’s income and market value.

Naspers traded 1.46% higher on a new all-time high of R2 847.20, after Tencent gained 1.75% to an all-time high of HK$302.30. Naspers reached the previous high in May this year, but then dropped more than 10% to R2 474.7 on profit taking.

Among the other dual-listed shares British American Tobacco [JSE:BTI] traded 1.09% higher at R928.44 and Steinhoff [JSE:SNH] was 0.84% up at R68.24.

Vodacom [JSE:VOD] set yet another 52-week high when it gained 1.71% to R183.59, and MTN [JSE:MTN] was 1.16% stronger ar R125.76.

Woolworths [JSE:WHL], which lost more than 30% over the past year, continued its recovery on Monday and traded 2.03% higher at R63.77 after gaining more than 4% over the previous seven days. Technical analysts say the share is oversold.

The Financial index is also slowly pushing upward and gained 0.42%; it is now almost 5% higher over the past month. Standard Bank [JSE:SBK] was 0.60% higher at R160.15 by mid-morning and is now almost 5% higher over the past seven days and more than 12% stronger over the past month.

The Resources index lost 0.29% as mining shares are still hampered by uncertainty about mineral rights and the strong rand. Impala Platinum [JSE:IMP] dropped sharply and shed 5.59% to R34.80. Anglo American [JSE:AGL] was 1.35% softer at R182.0 and BHP [JSE:BIL] lost 0.65% to R217.24.  


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Rand - Dollar
18.94
-0.2%
Rand - Pound
23.91
-0.1%
Rand - Euro
20.43
+0.2%
Rand - Aus dollar
12.34
+0.1%
Rand - Yen
0.13
-0.2%
Platinum
910.50
+1.5%
Palladium
1,011.50
+1.0%
Gold
2,221.35
+1.2%
Silver
24.87
+0.9%
Brent Crude
86.09
-0.2%
Top 40
68,346
+1.0%
All Share
74,536
+0.8%
Resource 10
57,251
+2.8%
Industrial 25
103,936
+0.6%
Financial 15
16,502
-0.1%
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