Local bourse struggles for direction Mon, 09 Dec 2019 18:52:54 +0200
The JSE struggled for direction on Monday before eventually closing mildly softer after a muted session.
The JSE finally matched trends with global markets on Friday as it closed firmer following a robust session.
The local bourse closed softer on Thursday on the back of broad-based losses across all the major indices.
The JSE advanced to close firmer on Wednesday after a lukewarm start to the session.
The local bourse tracked other global markets lower on Tuesday as markets priced a high probability of a phase one deal not being signed between China and the US.
Rand volatility is at a five-year low. Don’t count on it staying that way.
The JSE has started the week on the backfoot as it closed weaker on Monday on the back of losses in the industrials and financials indices.
The JSE slipped on Friday led by losses in the resources index where miners lost significant ground due to relatively weaker metal commodity prices.
The JSE traded mostly flat to firmer on Wednesday as it attempted to gain traction after consecutive sessions of losses.
The local bourse got off to a slow start as it retreated marginally in earlier trading before it found momentum towards the afternoon session.
Locally, the South African Reserve Bank decided to keep the repo rate unchanged at 6.50% as the bank reiterated that future policy decisions would continue to be data driven.
The United States bill could potentially complicate the ongoing US-China trade talks which could result in a deal not being signed soon.
US indices recorded fresh all-time highs led by tech shares as the main equity bourses continued to show signs of resilience. The upward momentum started off in Asia as the Hang Seng and Shanghai Composite Index closed 1.55% and 1% higher respectively.
The local bourse took a leaf from the firmer closes in Asian markets where the Hang Seng and Shanghai Composite Index closed 1.35% and 0.8% higher respectively, while the Nikkei managed gains of 0.49%.
The JSE closed softer on Friday as it lost momentum towards the close led by losses in the industrials and resources sectors.
The JSE traded mostly flat on Thursday before it closed softer as stocks struggled for direction.
The rand came under pressure as a result of this data as it reached a session low of R15.00/$.
The local bourse edged higher on Tuesday on the back of broad-based gains across all the major indices.
Most analysts may be predicting South Africa will lose its last investment-grade rating, but derivatives traders couldn't care less.
The JSE fell on Monday as it tracked other global markets lower which were dragged by increasing violence in Hong Kong, as well as US-China trade concerns.