Resources, gold stocks power S. African bourse to one-week high
Xinhua, October 22, 2016 Adjust font size:
The Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE) rallied to a one-week high on Friday, powered mainly by resources and gold mining stocks offsetting losses in industrials.
The rand slipped through the R14 mark to the U.S. dollar, supporting the rand-hedge stocks, although MTN still struggled to find a floor amid concerns over its Nigerian operations.
The South African rand was trading at R13.99 to the U.S. dollar, R17.03 to the British pound and R15.20 to the euro at 5:00 p.m. (CAT).
The all-share index was up 0.41 percent to 51,629.23 points at close of session, with the top 40 gaining 0.45 percent.
Diversified miners continued their fine form despite a strong U.S. dollar that exerted pressure on underlying commodity prices, with Anglo American hitting its best level since June 2015. On the top ten gainers list was Anglo American whose shares rose 4.49 percent to sell at R187.02
Anglo American rose 4.49 percent to R187.02, BHP Billiton picked 0.86 percent to R208.56 and Kumba Iron Ore 2.31 percent to R128.08.
BAT, the second-most valuable share on the JSE with a market cap of R1.7 trillion, slide 2.15 percent to R800.45. Endit