SOUTH AFRICA MARKET REVIEW
- South African markets closed in the red yesterday, after SA’s gross domestic product (GDP) contracted in 3Q23.
- Platinum miners, Impala Platinum (JO:IMPJ), Northam Platinum (JO:NPHJ) and Anglo American Platinum (JO:AMSJ) dropped 5.3%, 2.6 and 0.8%, respectively.
- Diversified miners, Anglo American (JO:AGLJ), Exxaro Resources (JO:EXXJ) and Kumba Iron Ore (JO:KIOJ) declined 2.8%, 2.5% and 1.5%, respectively.
- Gold miners, Anglo Gold Ashanti (JO:ANGJ) and Gold Fields (JO:GFIJ) shed 1.9% and 1.2%, respectively.
- Lenders, Nedbank Group (JO:NEDJ), Capitec Bank Holdings (JO:CPIJ) and FirstRand (JO:FSRJ) eased 1.6%, 1.2% and 0.8%, respectively.
- On the flipside, property developers, Redefine Properties (JO:RDFJ), Growthpoint Properties (JO:GRTJ) and Shaftesbury Capital advanced 3.1%, 1.7% and 1.6%, respectively.
- Food companies, RFG Holdings (JO:RFGJ) and Tiger Brands (JO:TBSJ) gained 2.3% and 1.2%, respectively.
- The JSE All Share index declined 1.0% to close at 75,215.50.
UK MARKET REVIEW
- The UK market finished weaker yesterday, led by losses in mining and banking sector stocks.
- Miners, Fresnillo (LON:FRES), Antofagasta (LON:ANTO) and Glencore (LON:GLEN) dropped 3.1%, 2.6% and 1.2%, respectively, tracking lower copper prices.
- Banking firm, Barclays (LON:BARC) declined 2.5%, after the company’s largest shareholder, Qatar Holdings sold around GBP510.00mn ($644.00mn) of its stake.
- Pharmaceutical companies, AstraZeneca (LON:AZN) and GSK (LON:GSK) shed 1.2% and 1.1%, respectively.
- On the other hand, real estate companies, Land Securities Group (LON:LAND), Berkeley Group Holdings (LON:BKGH) and Barratt Developments (LON:BDEV) advanced 1.5%, 1.1% and 0.7%, respectively.
- Retailers, J Sainsbury (LON:SBRY), Tesco (LON:TSCO) and B&M European Value Retail SA (LON:BMEB) gained 1.5%, 1.0% and 0.8%, respectively.
- Water utilities companies, Severn Trent (LON:SVT) and United Utilities Group (LON:UU) rose 1.4% and 1.1%, respectively.
- The FTSE 100 index declined 0.3% to close at 7,489.84.
US MARKET REVIEW
- US markets ended mostly lower yesterday, amid drop in the US job openings.
- Media and entertainment companies, Warner Bros Discovery (NASDAQ:WBD) and Walt Disney (NYSE:DIS) dropped 4.6% and 1.3%, respectively.
- Financial services companies, Goldman Sachs Group (NYSE:GS) and American Express (NYSE:AXP) shed 2.2% and 1.5%, respectively.
- Energy companies, Devon Energy Corporation (NYSE:DVN), Exxon Mobil Corporation (NYSE:XOM) and Chevron Corporation (NYSE:CVX) declined 2.0%, 1.9% and 1.4%, respectively.
- On the contrary, technology companies, Nvidia (NASDAQ:NVDA) Corporation, Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) and Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) advanced 2.3%, 2.1% and 0.9%, respectively.
- The S&P 500 index fell 0.1% to settle at 4,567.18, while the DJIA index declined 0.2% to close at 36,124.56.
- The NASDAQ index climbed 0.3% to end the trading session at 14,229.91.
ASIA MARKET REVIEW
- Asian markets are trading higher this morning, amid rate cut bets.
- In Japan, consumer electronics company, Sony Group (NYSE:SONY) has advanced 3.6%.
- On the flipside, financial services company, Fukuoka Financial Group (TYO:8354) has eased 0.6%.
- In Hong Kong, internet technology company, NetEase (NASDAQ:NTES) has gained 4.1%.
- On the other hand, insurance company, AIA Group (HK:1299) has declined 0.8%.
- In South Korea, automotive parts company, Korea Flange (KS:010100) has jumped 7.4%.
- On the contrary, pharmaceutical company, Kukje Pharma (KS:002720) has shed 4.6%.
- The Nikkei 225 index is trading 1.7% higher at 33,339.26.
- The Hang Seng index is trading 0.3% higher at 16,378.16, while the Kospi index is trading 0.5% higher at 2,507.24.
COMMODITIES
- At 05:30 SAST today, Brent prices rose 0.2% to trade at $77.33/bl.
- Yesterday, Brent prices fell 1.1% to a five-month low to settle at $77.20/bl, amid ongoing scepticism over OPEC+ supply cuts. Additionally, the American Petroleum Institute (API) reported that the US crude oil inventories rose by 0.59mn bls in the week ended 1 December 2023.
- At 05:30 SAST today, gold prices advanced 0.1% to trade at $2,022.10/oz. Yesterday, gold declined 0.5% to close at $2,019.42/oz, as a stronger dollar dented demand for the safe haven yellow metal.
- Yesterday, copper declined 1.9% to close at $8,252.95/mt. Aluminium closed 1.6% lower at $2,166.15/mt.
CURRENCIES
- Yesterday, the South African rand weakened against the US dollar. In South Africa, GDP contracted in 3Q23, raising recession fears. In the US, the S&P Global services PMI rose in November, in line with market expectations. Moreover, the ISM services PMI rose more than expected in November. Meanwhile, the JOLTS jobs openings declined more than expected in October.
- The yield on benchmark government bonds rose yesterday. The yield on the 2030 bond advanced to 10.01% while that for the longer-dated 2040 issue rose to 12.25%.
- At 05:30 SAST, the US dollar is trading 0.1% lower against the South African rand at R18.9337, while the euro is trading 0.1% lower at R20.4497. At 05:30 SAST, the British pound has marginally gained against the South African rand to trade at R23.8739.
- Yesterday, the euro mostly declined against most of the major currencies. In Germany, the HCOB services PMI rose in November. In the eurozone, the producer price index (PPI) declined in October, amid continued downward trend in energy prices. Moreover, the HCOB services PMI rose more than expected in November. In the UK, the S&P Global services PMI expanded for the first time in four months in November.
- At 05:30 SAST, the euro marginally slipped against the US dollar to trade at $1.0797, while it has weakened 0.1% against the British pound to trade at GBP0.8564.
ECONOMIC UPDATES
- In South Africa, gross domestic product (GDP) dropped 0.2% on a QoQ basis in 3Q23, more than market expectations for a drop of 0.1% and compared to a revised rise of 0.5% in the previous quarter.
- In the UK, the S&P Global services PMI rose to a level of 50.90 in November, compared to a level of 49.50 recorded in the previous month. Markets were expecting services PMI to rise to a level of 50.50.
- In France, the HCOB services PMI advanced to a level of 45.40 in November, more than market expectations for a rise to a level of 45.30. The HCOB services PMI had recorded a level of 45.20 in the previous month.
- In Germany, the HCOB services PMI rose to a level of 49.60 in November, more than market expectations and compared to a level of 48.20 in the previous month.
- In the eurozone, the HCOB services PMI rose to a level of 48.70 in November, more than market expectations for a rise to a level of 48.20. The HCOB services PMI had recorded a level of 47.80 in the previous month.
CORPORATE UPDATES
SOUTH AFRICA
- Coronation Fund Managers Limited (JO:CMLJ): The fund management company, in its FY23 results, indicated that its revenue dropped to R3.65bn from R3.74bn posted in the previous year. Its diluted EPS decreased 50.1% from the prior year to 182.90c.
- Former Delta Property Fund (JO:DLTJ) execs face delinquency application: Former Delta Property Fund Chair Johannes Magwaza and CEO Sandile Nomvete will have to fend off a delinquent directors application brought against them by a creditor of their liquidated entity Somnipoint.