Foreign investment in SA dives in 2010
July 26, 2011--South Africa's share of foreign direct investment (FDI) fell 70% in 2010 from the previous year, according to a United Nations Conference on Trade and Development report released on Tuesday.
South Africa "saw its inflows fall by over 70% to $1.6bn, a level amounting to only one-sixth of the peak recorded in the country in 2008", according to the World Investment Report 2011.
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Source: FIN24
GSE to start listing Exchange Traded Funds in September
July 25, 2011--Barring any regulatory hitches, the Ghana Stock Exchange will see the listing of its first Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs) in September, this year.
Exchange Traded Funds are securities traded on exchanges like shares but linked to the combined value of a portfolio or basket of underlying assets such as shares, commodities or bonds.
It provides investors the opportunity to own units tied to the commensurate value of the underlying assets.
The Exchange is working with ABSA Capital to list the commodity-backed NewGold ETF, which is already listed on the Johannesburg and Botswana Stock exchanges.
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Source: Ghana News
JSE edges up, but US debt weighs
July 25, 2011--The JSE plodded along to eke out a modest 49-point gain on Monday as US debt concerns continued to weigh on markets. Gold, considered a safe haven during periods of uncertainty, rose on Monday, giving gold stocks a lift.
By 17:00 local time, the JSE all-share index rose 0.15%, with banks up 0.97%, platinum miners up 0.68%, and industrials 0.46% higher. Financials were up 0.38%, while gold miners added 0.35%. Resources, however, shed 0.33%.
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Source: FIN24
Bonds weak ahead of auction
July 25, 2011--SA bonds were a few basis points weaker on Monday afternoon ahead of the auction on Tuesday.
By 15:32, the benchmark R157 bond was trading at 7.390% from its previous close of 7.370%. The R207 was bid at 8.280% and offered at 8.250% from 8.225%, and the R186 was trading at 8.510% from 8.465%.
The rand was bid at 6.7925 against the dollar from its previous close of 6.7706.
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Source: FIN24
Zimbabwe expects 9.3% growth
July 25, 2011-- Zimbabwe’s economy is on course to grow by 9.3% in 2011, up from 8.1% percent last year, mainly due to a recovery in the impoverished state’s key mining and agriculture sectors, Finance Minister Tendai Biti said on Tuesday.
“We are still on course to achieve our GDP growth rate of 9.3%. Agriculture and mining, with 19.3% and 44% growth respectively, are at the epicentre of this growth,” Biti said in a half-year budget review statement.
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Source: FIN24
JSE drops on US earnings
July 22, 2011--The JSE ended 109 points off on Friday, led lower by sentiment in the US on the back of worse than expected corporate earnings.
A firmer rand also helped curb any potential gains among resource stocks.
By 17:00 local time, the JSE All Share [JSE:J203] index slipped 0.34%, with resources up 0.24% but platinum miners off 0.40%.
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Source: FIN24
Bonds quiet with firmer bias
July 22, 2011--The longer-dated R186 was a bit firmer in late trade on Friday, while other major bonds were flat. A local trader noted that it had been a "very" quiet day, with not much market action.
By 15:54, the benchmark R157 bond was trading at 7.360% from its previous close of 7.360%. The R207 was bid at 8.220% and offered at 8.200% from 8.215%, and the R186 was trading at 8.440% from 8.450%.
The rand was bid at 6.7968 against the dollar from its previous close of 6.7648.
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Source: FIN 24
JSE ends up as Europe, US lift mkts
July 21, 2011--The JSE ended in positive territory as reports of progress made in resolving the Greek sovereign debt lifted markets, as well as on the back of some positive economic data from one of the US's Federal Reserve Banks.
By 17:00 local time, the JSE All Share [JSE:J203] index was 0.22% higher, with banks rising 1.11%, financials gaining 1.02%, and industrials lifting 0.11%.
Gold miners were down 1.16%, while platinum miners fell 0.79%, and resources were 0.04% off.
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Source: FIN24
Bonds firm after repo rate decision
July 21, 2011--South African bonds were firmer in late trade on Thursday after the SA Reserve Bank Monetary Policy Committee decided to leave the repo rate unchanged at 5.5% following a three-day meeting.
The repo rate was widely expected to remain unchanged, according to a survey of seven leading economists by I-Net Bridge.
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Source: FIN24
Rand rebounds against softer dollar
July 21, 2011-- Government bonds gained on Thursday after a dovish Reserve Bank statement that suggested interest rates could stay at 30-year lows throughout 2011.
The rand hit one-week highs against a softer dollar as optimism about the eurozone’s debt crisis prompted investors to buy risky assets.
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Source: FIN24