SOUTH AFRICA MARKET REVIEW
- South African markets closed in the green yesterday, buoyed by gains in mining sector stocks.
- Diversified miners, Pan African Resources (JO:PANJ) and Exxaro Resources (JO:EXXJ) advanced 4.7% and 1.4%, respectively.
- Gold miners, AngloGold Ashanti (JO:ANGJ) and Gold Fields (JO:GFIJ) gained 4.4% and 2.4%, respectively.
- Retailers, Cie Financiere Richemont S.A. (JO:CFRJ), Mr Price Group (JO:MRPJ), Spar Group (JO:SPPJ) and Shoprite Holdings (JO:SHPJ) rose 2.9%, 2.2%, 1.6% and 1.1%, respectively.
- Platinum miners, Impala Platinum (JO:IMPJ) and Northam Platinum (JO:NPHJ) added 2.7% and 1.1%, respectively.
- On the flipside, property developers, Hammerson (JO:HMNJ) (LON:HMSO) and Attacq (JO:ATTJ) dropped 8.7% and 1.9%, respectively.
- Lenders, Standard Bank Group (JO:SBKJ), Absa Group (JO:ABGJ), Capitec Bank Holdings (JO:CPIJ) and Nedbank Group (JO:NEDJ) declined 2.8%, 0.9%, 0.8% and 0.7%, respectively.
- The JSE All Share index advanced 0.1% to close at 85,818.81.
UK MARKET REVIEW
- The UK market finished firmer yesterday, boosted by gains in mining and energy sector stocks.
- Miners, Fresnillo (LON:FRES), Antofagasta (LON:ANTO), Glencore (LON:GLEN) and Rio Tinto (LON:RIO) jumped 2.9%, 2.2%, 1.3% and 1.0%, respectively.
- Pharmaceutical companies, AstraZeneca (LON:AZN), GSK (LON:GSK) and Hikma Pharmaceuticals (LON:HIK) advanced 2.2%, 2.0% and 1.5%, respectively.
- Energy companies, BP (LON:BP) and Shell (LON:RDSa) gained 1.8% and 1.7%, respectively, tracking higher crude prices.
- On the other hand, tobacco companies, British American Tobacco (LON:BATS) and Imperial Brands (LON:IMB) declined 1.8% and 1.0%, respectively, amid reports that the Indian government plans to hike goods and services tax on cigarettes, tobacco and aerated beverages.
- The FTSE 100 index advanced 0.6% to close at 8,359.41.
US MARKET REVIEW
- US markets ended mostly higher yesterday, following positive comments from the US Federal Reserve (Fed) on inflation and jobs.
- E-Commerce company, Amazon.com (NASDAQ:AMZN) advanced 1.3%, after the company unveiled a new slate of artificial intelligence platforms, called foundation models, at its annual AWS conference, boosting investor optimism.
- On the contrary, semiconductor chip companies, Intel Corporation (NASDAQ:INTC), ON Semiconductor Corporation (NASDAQ:ON) and Super Micro Computer (NASDAQ:SMCI) dropped 6.1%, 5.6% and 4.3%, respectively.
- Electric vehicles company, Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) declined 1.6%, after the company’s China-made electric vehicles sales fell 4.3% to 78,856 in November.
- The S&P 500 index marginally rose to settle at 6,049.88, while the DJIA index declined 0.2% to close at 44,705.53.
- The NASDAQ index climbed 0.4% to end the trading session at 19,480.91.
ASIA MARKET REVIEW
- Asian markets are trading mostly lower this morning, due to political uncertainty and concerns over potential market intervention following a day of unrest in South Korea.
- In Japan, automobile company, Nissan Motor (TYO:7201) has shed 3.3%.
- On the flipside, games and entertainment products company, Nintendo (TYO:7974) has advanced 2.7%.
- In Hong Kong, internet technology company, NetEase (NASDAQ:NTES) has gained 1.7%.
- On the other hand, automobile dealer, Zhongsheng Group Holdings (HK:0881) has declined 2.1%.
- In South Korea, steel pipes company, Nexteel (KS:092790) has plunged 14.7%.
- On the contrary, machine tools company, Hwacheon Machine Tool (KS:000850) has increased 2.3%.
- The Nikkei 225 index is trading 0.4% lower at 39,077.04.
- The Hang Seng index has added 0.2% to trade at 19,782.30, while the Kospi index is trading 1.9% lower at 2,453.24.
COMMODITIES
- At 05:30 SAST today, Brent prices rose 0.1% to trade at $73.7/bl.
- Yesterday, Brent prices rose 2.5% to settle at $73.62/bl, after Israel warned of potential action against Lebanon if the truce with Hezbollah failed and as investors anticipated OPEC+ extending supply cuts this week. Moreover, the American Petroleum Institute (API) reported that crude oil inventories rose by 1.23mn bls in the week ended 29 November 2024.
- At 05:30 SAST today, gold prices marginally advanced to trade at $2,643.60/oz. Yesterday, gold gained 0.2% to close at $2,643.44/oz, as a weaker dollar and a drop in the US Treasury yields boosted demand for the safe haven yellow metal.
- Yesterday, copper rose 1.5% to close at $9,010.04/mt. Aluminium closed 0.1% higher at $2,606.38/mt.
CURRENCIES
- Yesterday, the South African rand strengthened against the US dollar. In South Africa, the gross domestic product (GDP) contracted in 3Q24. In the US, the JOLTs job openings increased by more than expected in October.
- The yield on benchmark bonds were mixed yesterday. The yield on the SA 10-year generic bond declined to 10.18%, while that for SA 20-year generic bond remained unchanged at 10.96%.
- At 05:30 SAST, the US dollar is trading 0.3% higher against the South African rand at R18.1537, while the euro is trading 0.2% higher at R19.0546. At 05:30 SAST, the British pound has gained 0.2% against the South African rand to trade at R22.9781.
- Yesterday, the euro mostly declined against most of the major currencies.
- At 05:30 SAST, the euro slipped 0.1% against the US dollar to trade at $1.0495, while it has slightly weakened against the British pound to trade at GBP0.8292.
ECONOMIC UPDATES
- In South Africa, gross domestic product (GDP) dropped 0.3% on a QoQ basis in 3Q24, compared to a revised rise of 0.3% recorded in the previous quarter.
- In Switzerland, the consumer price index (CPI) fell 0.1% on a MoM basis in November, in line with market expectations and compared to a similar drop in the previous month.
- In the US, the JOLTs job openings advanced to 7.74mn in October, compared to a revised 7.37mn jobs in the previous month.
- In Japan, the Jibun Bank services PMI climbed to a level of 50.50 in November, more than market expectations for a rise to a level of 50.20. The Jibun Bank services PMI had recorded a level of 49.70 in the previous month.
- In China, the Caixin services PMI unexpectedly fell to a level of 51.50 in November, compared to a level of 52.00 recorded in the previous month.
- In Australia, the AIG industry index rose to a level of -10.80 in November, compared to a level of -28.80 recorded in the previous month.
- In Australia, the Judo Bank services PMI fell to a level of 50.50 in November, less than market expectations for a fall to a level of 49.60. The Judo Bank services PMI had recorded a level of 51.00 in the previous month.
- In Australia, GDP rose 0.3% on a QoQ basis in 3Q24, less than market expectations for a rise of 0.4%. GDP had recorded a rise of 0.2% in the previous quarter.
CORPORATE UPDATES
SOUTH AFRICA
- Fortress Real Estate Investments Limited: The real estate investment trust company, in its trading and operational update for the period from 30 June 2024 to 31 October 2024, revealed that its retail portfolio achieved a 4.5% like-for-like tenant turnover growth and maintained a low vacancy rate of 1.1%. Moreover, its vacancies, based on rental, in the industrial portfolio increased to 11.1% at 31 October 2024 from 8.9% at 30 June 2024. Office vacancies, based on rental, increased to 27.9% at 31 October 2024 from 24.3% at 30 June 2024. Meanwhile, during the period, total vacancies, based on rental, remained flat at 3.4%. Vacancies, based on rental, in South African logistics portfolio decreased to 1.4% at 31 October 2024 from 1.5% at 30 June 2024. Central and Eastern European (CEE) logistics vacancies, based on rental, reduced to 3.4% at 31 October 2024 from 3.5% at 30 June 2024.
- Lighthouse Properties Limited (JO:LTEJ): The real estate investment trust company, in its pre-close trading update, revealed that total footfall of the malls owned at the end of September 2024 increased by 2.3%, as compared with the previous year. All regions in the portfolio recorded growth in footfall above 2.0%. During the period, total sales increased by 5.5%. Additionally, the company’s share of vacancies in the portfolio reduced to 2.8% at September 2024 from 3.3% at December 2023. Moreover, Since June 2024, the following two Iberian malls were acquired: Alegro Montijo in Portugal and Espai Girones in Spain. Also, the company completed the disposal of Planet Koper, a mall located in Koper, Slovenia, closed on 29 November 2024.
- Exxaro (JO:EXXJ) expects full-year production to fall: Resources group Exxaro says thermal coal production is expected to be 6.0% lower than the previous financial year, mainly due to lower Eskom demand in the Waterberg region and lower offtake at Leeuwpan in Mpumalanga.