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Rand drops over 2% against dollar
December 12, 2011--The rand fell 2.4% against the dollar on Monday and government bonds extended last week’s losses as South African markets suffered another bout of investor risk-aversion.
The rand opened at 8.10 and even firmed slightly in early trade but was down 2.4% to 8.2760 by late afternoon as investors withdrew from risky positions while a solution to Europe’s debt crisis eludes markets.
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Source: FIN24
JSE ends volatile week lower
December 9, 2011-- South African stocks ended a skittish week slightly lower on Friday as investors fretting over the outcome of a key meeting in Europe to quell the region’s debt crisis sold off industrial stocks such as platinum miner Lonmin.
Nearly all European Union leaders agreed to build a closer fiscal union to address the region’s debt problems after a two-day summit but Britain said it could not accept the proposed EU treaty amendments.
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Source: FIN24
Bonds weaken as eurozone jitters persist
December 9, 2011--South African bonds were weaker in midday trade on Friday in line with the rand, as uncertainly over the eurozone crisis weighed on sentiment.
By 11:50, the benchmark R157 bond was trading at 6.760% from its previous close of 6.720%. The R207 was trading at 7.965% from a previous close of 7.900%. and the R186 was trading at 8.490% from its close of 8.430%.
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Source: FIN24
Rand follows euro stronger
December 9, 2011--The rand was firmer against the dollar in late afternoon trade on Friday as the euro rebounded against the dollar.
"The euro - and therefore the rand - is looking better but I don't know how long this will last," a local currency trader said.
"The market is still very much driven by headlines," he added.
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Source: FIN24
JSE ends flat
December 8, 2011--South African stocks ended flat on Thursday after bouncing off a technical resistance level and amid investor jitters ahead of a European leaders’ summit aimed at limiting a further deterioration of the euro zone’s debt crisis.
Johannesburg’s Top 40 - (Tradeable) [JSE:J200] index finished 0.08% lower at 29 283.57 and the broader All Share [JSE:J203] was flat at 32 760.17.
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Source: FIN24
Rand falls sharply after ECB disappoints
December 8, 2011-- South Africa rand fell sharply across the board on Thursday as the European Central Bank signalled it would not take aggressive action to deal with the region’s debt crisis, hurting investors’ appetite for riskier assets.
The rand was already weak after data showing the current account widened more than expected in the third quarter and manufacturing and mining output were weak in October.
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Source: FIN24
JSE stable, gold firms rally
December 7, 2011--Johannesburg’s stock market ended flat on Wednesday with investors selling some stocks to lock in a string of session gains while gold miners found support from safe-haven buying after a recent sell-off.
The gold miners index added nearly 2% with producer Harmony rising for the first session in four, with a 2.9% gain to R114.
Rival Gold Fields, the world’s fourth-largest producer of the precious metal, rose 2.8% to R136.74.
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Source: FIN24
Rand weakens, seen under pressure
December 7, 2011--South Africa’s rand weakened against the dollar on Wednesday, losing momentum after yet another failure to sustain gains below the 8.00/dollar mark.
Thin liquidity conditions exacerbated its volatility and it swung in wide ranges, with volumes traded in the session at around R1.5bn compared with an average R2.4bn a day in the past three months.
Lower-than expected retail sales data also did not help. The currency fell as much as 1.1% on the day to a session low of 8.1140.
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Source: FIN24
SA's forex reserves lower
December 7, 2011-- South Africa’s international liquidity position fell more than expected in November as gross reserves decreased on a stronger dollar against major currencies, causing a decline in foreign currency reserves.
The SA Reserve Bank (Sarb) said on Wednesday net gold and foreign exchange reserves fell to $48.633bn in November from $49.221bn in October, also as the forward position of the bank declines.
A Reuters poll showed the market was expecting net reserves to fall to $49.05bn in October.
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Source: FIN24
Stocks unfazed after S&P warning
December 6, 2011--US and European stocks were little changed Tuesday after S&P’s downgrade warning to 15 euro nations, though analysts expressed a cautious hope the move would spur leaders into more decisive action.
Even so, such optimism was tenuous and measures of financial risk remained at elevated levels with banks increasingly reluctant to lend to each other. Standard & Poor’s warned late Monday it could cut credit ratings across the euro zone, underscoring just what is at stake ahead of a key summit this week. It could also help Germany and France force through proposed treaty changes.
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Source: FIN24
