SOUTH AFRICA MARKET REVIEW
- South African markets closed in the red yesterday, led by losses in shares of Sasol.
- The chemicals and energy company dropped 5.0%, to its lowest level since November 2020, after the company reported a weaker production in 1Q25.
- Property developers, Emira Property Fund (JO:EMIJ), Hammerson (LON:HMSO), Attacq (JO:ATTJ) and Redefine Properties (JO:RDFJ) declined 2.5%, 1.9%, 1.4% and 1.0%, respectively.
- Insurance companies, Sanlam (JO:SLMJ) and Discovery (JO:DSBPp) both shed 1.6%, each.
- Lenders, Absa Group (JO:ABGJ) and Capitec Bank Holdings (JO:CPIJ) eased 1.5% and 1.4%, respectively.
- On the flipside, telecommunications companies, Blue Label Telecoms (JO:BLUJ) and Telkom SA SOC (JO:TKGJ) advanced 1.8% and 1.4%, respectively.
- Gold miners, Sibanye Stillwater (JO:SSWJ), AngloGold Ashanti (JO:ANGJ) and Harmony Gold Mining Company (JO:HARJ) gained 1.6%, 1.0% and 0.8%, respectively.
- The JSE All Share index declined 0.4% to close at 86,752.88.
UK MARKET REVIEW
- The UK market finished weaker yesterday, weighed down by losses in insurance and real estate sector stocks.
- Insurance companies, Admiral Group (LON:ADML), Aviva (LON:AV) and Legal & General Group (LON:LGEN) dropped 2.0%, 1.1% and 0.7%, respectively.
- Real estate companies, Persimmon (LON:PSN), Taylor Wimpey (LON:TW), Land Securities Group (LON:LAND) and Berkeley Group Holdings (LON:BKGH) declined 1.8%, 1.7%, 1.5% and 1.1%, respectively.
- Retailers, Next (LON:NXT) and Marks & Spencer Group (LON:MKS) eased 1.1% and 0.7%, respectively.
- On the other hand, banking firms, Standard Chartered (LON:STAN), Barclays (LON:BARC), HSBC Holdings (LON:HSBA) and NatWest Group (LON:NWG) advanced 1.3%, 1.0%, 0.9% and 0.6%, respectively.
- Paper and packaging companies, DS Smith (LON:SMDS) and Mondi (LON:MNDI) gained 1.1% and 0.8%, respectively.
- The FTSE 100 index declined 0.1% to close at 8,306.54.
US MARKET REVIEW
- US markets ended mostly lower yesterday, as investors assessed corporate earnings results.
- Defense and aerospace company, Lockheed Martin (NYSE:LMT) dropped 6.1%, after the company’s F-35 fighter jet program faced payment headwinds stemming from the US government contracting process.
- Meanwhile, the company raised its annual profit and sales forecasts. Telecommunications company, Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) declined 5.0%, after the company reported lower than expected revenue in 3Q24.
- On the contrary, automobile company, General Motors (NYSE:GM) surged 9.8%, after the company reported better than expected results in 3Q24, citing resilient consumer demand for its trucks and SUVs.
- The S&P 500 index marginally fell to settle at 5,851.20, while the DJIA index marginally declined to close at 42,924.89.
- The NASDAQ index climbed 0.2% to end the trading session at 18,573.13.
ASIA MARKET REVIEW
- Asian markets are trading mostly higher this morning.
- In Japan, transportation company, Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha (TYO:9107) has declined 2.1%.
- On the flipside, automobile company, Toyota Motor Corporation (TYO:7203) has advanced 3.8%.
- In Hong Kong, consumer electronics company, Xiaomi Corporation (HK:1810) has jumped 4.5%.
- On the other hand, consumer electronics company, Lenovo Group (HK:0992) had declined 1.1%.
- In South Korea, security systems company, Hitron Systems (KS:019490) has surged 7.5%.
- The Nikkei 225 index is trading 0.3% lower at 38,300.81.
- The Hang Seng index has gained 1.3% to trade at 20,767.29, while the Kospi index is trading 1.1% higher at 2,600.59.
COMMODITIES
- At 05:30 SAST today, Brent prices fell 0.2% to trade at $75.86/bl.
- Yesterday, Brent prices rose 2.4% to settle at $76.04/bl, following signs of improving demand from China. Additionally, the American Petroleum Institute (API) reported that crude oil inventories rose by 1.64mn bls in the week ended 18 October 2024.
- At 05:30 SAST today, gold prices declined 0.3% to trade at $2,740.19/oz. Yesterday, gold gained 1.1% to close at $2,748.38/oz, amid uncertainties surrounding US election and the war in the Middle East.
- Yesterday, copper rose 0.7% to close at $9,490.40/mt. Aluminium closed 1.5% higher at $2,634.24/mt.
CURRENCIES
- Yesterday, the South African rand weakened against the US dollar. In the US, the Richmond Fed Manufacturing Index rose more than expected in October.
- The yield on benchmark bonds fell yesterday. The yield on the SA 10-year generic bond declined to 10.62%, while that for SA 20-year generic bond fell to 11.38%.
- At 05:30 SAST, the US dollar is trading 0.1% lower against the South African rand at R17.5393, while the euro is trading marginally higher at R18.9463. At 05:30 SAST, the British pound has slightly gained against the South African rand to trade at R22.781.
- Yesterday, the euro declined against most of the major currencies.
- At 05:30 SAST, the euro marginally advanced against the US dollar to trade at $1.0803, while it has slightly weakened against the British pound to trade at GBP0.8318.
ECONOMIC UPDATES
- In the US, the Richmond Fed Manufacturing Index rose to a level of -14.00 in October, more than market expectations for a rise to a level of -18.00. The Richmond Fed Manufacturing Index had recorded a level of -21.00 in the previous month.
- The European Central Bank (ECB) President Christine Lagarde said she believes inflation would hit the 2.0% target next year and hopes it will happen even sooner than expected.
CORPORATE UPDATES
SOUTH AFRICA
- Sasol Limited (JO:SOLJ): The global chemical and energy company, in its 1Q25 production and sales metrics update, revealed that mining production declined 4.0% as compared with the prior year, impacted by coal quality and operational challenges. Secunda Operations (SO) production volumes dropped 2.0% as compared with the prior year. In Chemicals business, total sales dropped 6.0% to 1,508kt. Meanwhile, in Mozambique, gas production increased 3.0% as compared with the previous year, despite the planned shutdown at the central processing facility (CPF).