JSE closes lower as blue-chip stocks remain under pressure

JOHANNESBURG, Dec. 13 (Xinhua) -- The Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE) closed lower on Wednesday, as a handful of blue-chip stocks remained under severe pressure.

The all share index was down 0.31 percent to 57,344.41 points at close; the benchmark top 40 index fell 0.31 percent to 51,151.27 points.

The resources index was the only major index to close in the green as it gained 0.12 percent. The industrials index lost 0.56 percent while the financials index climbed 0.43 percent.

The drops in PSG's share price have come since Markus Jooste resigned as Steinhoff International CEO last Wednesday amid accounting irregularity allegations.

Steinhoff shares were particularly volatile, pushing up nearly 20 percent at one stage in the session before settling back to a gain of 6 percent, at R11.82.

Gold miners gained 1.71 percent and platinums tumbled 2.33 percent, hovering at the weakest point since February 2016, at 874.71 U.S. dollars an ounce. The spot gold was down 0.24 percent at 1,248.86 dollars.

Financial stocks held up reasonably well, as did retailers, in line with a stable South African rand.

Naspers, the highest-priced share on the local market, was down 0.59 percent to R3,479.39.

AngloGold Ashanti slipped 2.24 percent to R121.22, Gold Fields 2.36 percent to R49.62, and Impala Platinum 4.61 percent to R29. Lonmin rose 12.01 percent to R12.5, after announcing it had completed the acquisition of Pandora mine earlier in the day.

FirstRand was up 1.72 percent to R54.44 and Standard Bank regained 1.56 percent to R170.19.

Technology group EOH rose 12.81 percent to R55.22, following the announcement that the company's former CEO, Asher Bohbot, would return to the business on a full-time contract.

Food producer AVI was up 1.77 percent to R105.52 and Pioneer Foods 1.95 percent to R123.82. Enditem