JSE gains as global sentiment improves

The JSE was higher on Friday morning, tracking some global markets as hopes that the US and China will soon resolve the trade dispute lifted sentiment. 

Risk appetite improved after China said it hoped the US would create necessary conditions for the two countries to negotiate in September. Investors rushed to safe-haven assets earlier this week after the US-China trade war escalated, with the US threatening additional tariffs.

Earlier, Chinese shares pared the morning’s gains with the Shanghai Composite down 0.16% and the Hong Kong Hang Seng was flat while Japan’s Nikkei 225 was up 1.19%. In Europe, the FTSE 100 added 0.39%, France’s CAC 40 0.59% and Germany’s DAX 30 0.72%At 10.21am, the JSE all share was up 0.76% to 54,826.70 points and the top 40 0.85%. Banks added 1.59% and financials 1.02%.

Tower Property Fund was up 1.62% to R5.64. The landlord said on Friday its headline earnings fell 26% to R197m in the year to end-May. 

African Rainbow Minerals was up 0.68% to R161.80 after it said on Friday that its headline earnings increased by 9% to R5.2bn in the year to end-June. 

The SA Revenue Service is scheduled to release the trade balance for July on Friday. A surplus of R2.9bn is the consensus according to a Bloomberg poll, from R4.4bn in the previous month.

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Source: businesslive.co.za