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Rand ends firmer on eurozone deal
March 30, 2012--The rand ended firmer on Friday as it strengthened after European finance ministers agreed to increase the size of the firewall meant to protect the stronger eurozone members from contagion from the weaker members.
"The eurozone deal has removed some uncertainty so the euro rallied on that agreement and we just followed suit. Trade was quiet in the morning, but picked up in the afternoon as both importers and exporters squared off their books due to the quarter-end," a local trader said.
At 18:00 local time, the rand was bid at R7.6554 to the dollar from its previous close of R7.7117 and Thursday's intraday worst level of R7.7750. It was bid at R10.2008 to the euro from R10.2605 before, and at R12.2288 against sterling from R12.3062 previously.
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Source: FIN24
Miners leads SA stocks lower
March 29, 2012--South African stocks fell on Thursday, led by miners on faltering commodity prices, while a downbeat tone in global markets added to the bearish sentiment.
The index is on course for its second quarterly gain while the central bank eased concerns by signaling on Thursday interest rates will remain on hold for some time when it released its latest monetary policy decision.
Miners dominated the losers’ list as worries about the health of the global economy and demand for industrial metals such as platinum and copper weighed on prices.
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Source: FIN24
Rand remains softer after MPC decision
March 29, 2012--The rand remained softer against the dollar in late afternoon trade on Thursday as the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) of the SA Reserve Bank (Sarb) delivered its decision to keep the repo rate unchanged.
The local currency was also tracking a euro that had been weakened by mixed eurozone data and comments from the OECD.
"The MPC decision was a non-event," Anton Grobbelaar, managing director of Peritus Forex Solutions said.
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Source: FIN24
JSE edges down ahead of rates decision
March 28, 2012--South African stocks ended slightly lower on Wednesday as market momentum slowed after three straight days of gains while investors paused ahead of a central bank decision on interest rates this week.
A downgrade on the outlook for Africa’s largest economy by S&P also weighed on sentiment. The ratings agency said it was worried not enough was being done to combat the country’s chronic unemployment.
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Source: FIN24
Rand falls more than 1%, S&P weighs
March 28, 2012--South Africa’s rand fell more than 1.3% against the dollar on Wednesday and was the worst performer in a basket of 20 emerging market currencies, partly hit by S&P downgrading the country’s outlook to negative from stable.
Government bonds extended the previous day’s losses, pushing yields to week-long highs as investors adjust their long positions particularly at the longer end of the curve after a poorly subscribed weekly auction on Wednesday.
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Source: FIN24
JSE stays in the black
March 27, 2012--The JSE remained on the front foot at noon on Tuesday in line with the main global stock markets, buoyed by US Federal Reserve chairperson Ben Bernanke's positive comments on support for the US labour market.
In midday trade, the JSE All Share [JSE:J203] index was up 0.70% to 33 900.06 points, led by banking stocks which lifted 1.28%. Platinum miners gained 1.08%, resources were up 0.43%.
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Source: FIN24
Rand, bonds weaken ahead of MPC
March 27, 2012--Government bonds weakened for the first time in three days and the rand reversed earlier gains against the dollar on Tuesday, although the currency’s carry trade appeal could boost it in the short term.
The rand earlier rallied to R7.5484 to the greenback, its firmest level since March 20, but retreated to R7.5980 in early evening trade, weakening 0.21% from Monday’s close at R7.5820.
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Source: FIN24
JSE inches up on upbeat global mood
March 26, 2012--South African stocks ended slightly higher on Monday, tracking an upbeat mood in global markets, but investors refrained from making large moves ahead of domestic interest rate verdict later in the week.
The central bank will announce on Thursday its decision on interest rates, with most economists expecting the bank to keep the number on hold at 5.5%.
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Source: FIN24
Rand gets boost from Bernanke comments
March 26, 2012--The rand and bonds firmed on Monday against the dollar on the back of Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke’s dovish comments, triggering a large sell-off from the greenback against most emerging market currencies.
Bernanke’s warning that the US economy needed to grow faster to get the unemployment rate down boosted hopes early in the session that the bank could yet conduct another round of quantitative easing.
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Source: FIN24
JSE ends flat, investors eye next MPC
March 23, 2012--South African stocks closed higher on Friday for the first time this week as a late rally inspired by a turn-around on Wall Street saw the market claw back losses.
The blue-chip Top 40 - (Tradeable) [JSE:J200] index ended 0.06% higher at 29 716.93. The broader All Share [JSE:J203] index added the same percentage to finish at 33,572.07.
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Source: FIN24
