JSE flat as corporate results offset a weaker dollar

The JSE was little changed on Tuesday, buoyed somewhat by local corporate news and a weaker dollar environment, after US President Donald Trump once again took aim at the US Federal Reserve’s interest-rate policy.

Reports suggesting Trump was dissatisfied with rising interest rates put the dollar under pressure, with gold miners, banks and retailers gaining as a result.

The gold index performed best, despite a relatively flat precious metal price, and news that the National Union of Mineworkers had rejected the latest wage offer from companies in the sector, thus beginning a process of conciliation and arbitration.

Big diversified miners and some rand hedges, however, were under pressure as the rand extended Monday’s gains.

The all share firmed 0.07% to 57,186.7 points and the top 40 rose 0.05%. Gold miners rose 2.37%, general retailers 2.07% and banks 1.25%.

Platinums fell 1.12% and the resources index 1.19%.

Global markets edged higher, with investors digesting the latest signals with respect to the global trade war, including the start of a fresh round of talks this week between the US and China, reported Dow Jones Newswires.

Corporate results were mixed, with investors digesting a slew of results from large caps, including BHP, Imperial Holdings, Harmony and Shoprite.

BHP fell 3.19% to R297.25, despite saying earlier that attributable profit rose 33% to $8.9bn in the year to end-June.

Sasol gained 2.15% to R534.27.

British American Tobacco slumped 3.35% to R761.99 and Richemont 2.21% to R123.09.

Imperial Holdings gained 1.5% to R201.31. Annual revenue to end-June was up 11% to R128.7bn and operating profit rose 6% to R6.4bn.

Harmony gained 2.27% to R21.65, after reporting a 13% rise in gold production in the year to end-June.

Shoprite slumped 4.15% to R203, after reporting earlier that diluted headline earnings per share (HEPS) dropped 3.8% for the year to end-July. This was its lowest close since November 2017.

Adcock Ingram firmed 2.31% to R66.40, having said earlier that it expected to report growth in HEPS of between 21.6% and 24.8% in the year to end-June.

Capitec gained 4.15% to R980.

Shortly after the JSE closed, the Dow had gained 0.29% to 25,834.21 points. In Europe, the FTSE 100 was 0.34% lower, while the CAC 40 had gained 0.72% and the DAX 30 0.47%.

At the same time, gold had lost 0.2% to $1,187.07 an ounce and platinum 0.96% to $787.86. Brent crude was 0.53% higher at $72.59 a barrel.