Rand plummets through R9.60/$
May 21, 2013--The rand slid to its lowest levels against the dollar in four years as investor confidence saw a sell-off in bonds.
Nomura's emerging markets analyst Peter Attard Montalto said the recent move to breach those highs was in part due to dollar strength thanks to the moves in real yields there.
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Source: FIN24
Bonds weaker on rand, wage demands
May 20, 2013--South African bonds were weaker in midday trade on Monday on a softer rand and certain wage demands being made which are ten times higher than inflation.
“The softer rand and the unrealistic wage demands in the mining sector have hurt our bonds‚” a local bond trader said.
At 11:51 the benchmark R186 was trading at 6.930% from 6.820% at Friday’s close.
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Source: FIN24
Bonds weaken on negative SA sentiment
May 17, 2013--South African bonds weakened in quiet midday trade on Friday as the bond market reflected the negative foreign investor perception of SA.
“What a difference a week makes! A week ago we were at record low yields‚ but then Amplats came out with its fudge on ‘right sizing’ and since then we have just gone downhill‚” a local bond trader said.
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Source: FIN24
Rand hits 4-year low
May 17, 2013--The rand hit a four-year low in early Friday trade amid concerns about more labour unrest in the platinum mining sector and its potential to inflict wider damage on Africa's biggest economy.
The rand fell to R9.403/$ at 08:14, extending its declines beyond the R9.3845 low hit in the previous session. The South African currency was last at these levels in April 2009.
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Source: FIN24
Nigeria's Oil Sector At Crossroads-Report
May 16, 2013--The Resources Governance Index of the Revenue Watch Institute (RWI) has ranked Nigeria weak in its oil revenue.
Report of the Institute for 2013 released yesterday in the United States said Nigeria's hydrocarbons sector is at a crossroads as a result of the current efforts to pass the Petroleum Industry Bill.
The report ranked Nigeria 40 out of 58 countries studied.
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Source: AllAfrica.com
Industrials push JSE to record high
May 16, 2013--Solid demand for industrial stocks such as Richemont and Naspers [JSE:NPN] propelled the JSE to a fresh high on Thursday, outpacing the continuing selloff in the resources sector on a combination of weaker commodity prices and labour tensions.
At 12:49‚ the JSE All Share [JSE:J203] index was up 0.91% to 41 389.72 points‚ with the Top 40 - (Tradeable) [JSE:J200] blue chip index rallying 1.20%. Industrial and financial indices gained 1.61% and 0.74% respectively while the gold and platinum benchmarks lost 3.11% and 1.86% respectively.
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Source: FIN24
Bonds mixed in quiet trade
May 16, 2013--South African bonds were mixed in thin midday trade on Thursday.
“Bonds are mainly being marked weaker on the back of the softer rand‚ but trade is very thin‚ so we are seeing that more in bid prices rather than actual trades‚” a local bond trader said.
At 11:30 the benchmark R186 was trading at 6.795% from 6.800% at Wednesday’s close and 6.780% at Tuesday’s close.
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Source: FIN24
Brics Q&A
May 16, 2013--AS THE developed economies languish, the world's attention is increasingly focused on the fast-growing Brics countries: Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa.
Emerging markets expert Mark Mobius answers some pertinent questions.
Growth in Bric economies has slowed down in 2012 and early 2013. They are now facing major problems. How do you perceive the macroeconomic situation in each country? What are their major risks?
It is a bit of an exaggeration to say that the Bric countries are “facing major problems”. Their gross domestic product (GDP) growth rates have slowed but apart from Brazil, the other three economies are still growing much, much faster than most developed countries.
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Source: FIN24
JSE flat, labour woes weigh on mines
May 15, 2013--The JSE was flat in early trade on Wednesday, with labour unrest and metal prices weighing on mining stocks while mild strength in industrial counters helped offset those falls.
At 9:20‚ the JSE All Share [JSE:J203] index was 0.02% softer at 40 702.16 points and the Top 40 - (Tradeable) [JSE:J200] index was 0.03% lower.
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Source: FIN24
Rand down on labour tensions
May 15, 2013--The rand was weaker against major currencies on Wednesday at midday as ongoing labour tensions in the platinum sector and poor eurozone GDP figures weighed.
“Labour tensions are the key drivers behind the rand’s weakness. Yesterday we had a big movement and today we’ve had a slight drift as the pressure continues‚” said Viv Govender‚ a market analyst at Vunani Private clients.
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Source: FIN24