South Africa Market Watch | 2 July 2015: South African equity sustains uptrend, All share index gains 0.63%

Johannesburg, South Africa (Capital Markets in Africa) — South African equity markets maintained the bullish momentum. The Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE) All Share finished 0.63 percent or 327.43 points higher to close at 52,215.47 points.

The JSE Top 40 index surged by  0.68 percent or 314.41 points to end at 46,627.77 points and JSE Financial sector index gained 0.49 percent at 43,856.95 points. Both Industrial sector index and industrial 25 index grew by 0.58 percent (to end at 76,685.28) and 0.55 percent (to settle at 67,563.27) respectively. Likewise, the resource sector index added 1.16 percent with a closing level of 39,071.93. However, the JSE Gold index dipped by 1.16 percent at 984.53 level.

Looking at the market strength and breath, the market recorded 187 upward movers and 144 downward movers as well as 69 stayers, hence market strength ends in positive Amongst the top ten movers upwards on Thursday was Distribution & Warehousing Network, whose shares rose 5.41% to ZAR 5.85 after investors bought and sold 2,612,234 shares in 3 deals. Comair climbed 4.88% after 187 deals saw the exchange of 816,890 shares, which sent the share price up to ZAR 4.30 by market’s close.

Conversely, Arcelormittal SA was amongst the top losers, with a loss of 6.98 percent following the trade of 1,032,240 shares in 893 deals, leaving the share price down at ZAR 10.80. After 200 deals totalling 445,046 shares, Alexander Forbes Group Holdings slid 5 percent to sell at ZAR 8.55.

On the foreign exchange market, the South African Rand was weaker, trading at ZAR12.25 to the US dollar, ZAR 19.06 to the British pound and ZAR 13.59 to the Euro, by losing 0.20 percent, 0.06 percent and 0.37 percent respectively. However, the Rand marginally rose by ZAR 0.0004 against the New Zealand dollar to trade at ZAR 8.25.