SOUTH AFRICA MARKET REVIEW
- South African markets closed in the green on Friday, buoyed by gains in retail and mining sector stocks.
- Retailers, Cashbuild (JO:CSBJ), Clicks Group (JO:CLSJ) and Pick ‘n Pay Stores (JO:PIKJ) advanced 3.5%, 1.2% and 0.8%, respectively.
- Gold miners, Sibanye Stillwater (JO:SSWJ), Gold Fields (JO:GFIJ), AngloGold Ashanti (JO:ANGJ) and Harmony Gold Mining (JO:HARJ) gained 2.7%, 1.8%, 0.8% and 0.7%, respectively.
- Telecommunications company, Telkom SA SOC (JO:TKGJ) gained 2.3%, after it announced that its shareholders had approved a deal that will see the company selling its masts and towers portfolio.
- Peer, Blue Label Telecoms (JO:BLUJ) rose 1.6%. Diversified miners, Kumba Iron Ore (JO:KIOJ) and Exxaro Resources (JO:EXXJ) added 1.9% and 1.1%, respectively.
- On the flipside, property developers, Emira Property Fund (JO:EMIJ), MAS (JO:MSPJ) and Vukile Property Fund (JO:VKEJ) declined 4.5%, 0.9% and 0.8%, respectively.
- The JSE All Share index advanced 0.2% to close at 79,150.84.
UK MARKET REVIEW
- The UK market finished weaker for a fourth consecutive session on Friday, amid political uncertainty ahead of the UK elections and as rate cut hopes faded.
- Energy utilities companies, National Grid (LON:NG), Centrica (LON:CNA) and SSE (LON:SSE) dropped 4.6%, 1.9% and 1.6%, respectively.
- Water utilities companies, Severn Trent (LON:SVT) and United Utilities Group (LON:UU) declined 2.2% and 1.6%, respectively.
- On the other hand, retailers, Ocado Group (LON:OCDO), Marks & Spencer Group (LON:MKS) and Tesco (LON:TSCO) advanced 6.2%, 2.3% and 0.9%, respectively.
- Paper and packaging companies, Smurfit Kappa Group (LON:SKG) and Mondi (LON:MNDI) gained 1.4% and 0.9%, respectively. Insurance companies, Aviva (LON:AV) and Legal & General Group (LON:LGEN) both rose 1.1%.
- The FTSE 100 index declined 0.3% to close at 8,317.59.
US MARKET REVIEW
- US markets ended higher on Friday, amid improving consumer outlook on inflation.
- Departmental stores company, Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) surged 7.9%, after the company reported better than expected results in 1Q24 and raised its annual profit forecast.
- Technology companies, Intel (NASDAQ:INTC), Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) and Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) advanced 2.2%, 1.7% and 0.7%, respectively.
- Financial services companies, JPMorgan Chase (NYSE:JPM), American Express (NYSE:AXP) and Goldman Sachs Group (NYSE:GS) gained 1.9%, 1.2% and 0.7%, respectively.
- On the contrary, human resources software company, Workday (NASDAQ:WDAY) plunged 15.3%, after the company trimmed its annual subscription revenue forecast.
- The S&P 500 index advanced 0.7% to close at 5,304.72, while the DJIA index marginally rose to close at 39,069.59.
- The NASDAQ index climbed 1.1% to end the trading session at 16,920.79.
ASIA MARKET REVIEW
- Asian markets are trading mostly higher this morning, as industrial profits in China rose during the first four months of the year.
- In Japan, consumer electronics company, Renesas Electronics (TYO:6723) has advanced 4.8%.
- On the flipside, automobile company, Yamaha Corporation (TYO:7951) has declined 2.3%.
- In Hong Kong, internet technology company, NetEase (NASDAQ:NTES) has dropped 2.9%.
- On the other hand, consumer electronics company, Lenovo Group (HK:0992) has jumped 6.9%.
- In South Korea, industrial plant construction services company, Soosan Industries (KS:126720) has surged 10.8%.
- On the contrary, pharmaceutical company, HanAll Biopharma (KS:009420) has shed 4.1%.
- The Nikkei 225 index is trading 0.3% higher at 38,758.96.
- The Hang Seng index has advanced 0.4% to trade at 18,684.53, while the Kospi index is trading 0.6% higher at 2,703.52.
COMMODITIES
- At 05:30 SAST today, Brent prices rose 0.2% to trade at $82.32/bl.
- On Friday, Brent prices rose 0.9% to settle at $82.12/bl, amid concerns that stronger US economic data would keep interest rates elevated for a longer period thereby denting fuel demand. Meanwhile, the Baker Hughes reported that the US oil rigs count remained unchanged at 497 in the week ended 24 May 2024.
- At 05:30 SAST today, gold prices advanced 0.5% to trade at $2,345.85/oz. On Friday, gold gained 0.2% to close at $2,333.76/oz, as a weaker dollar boosted demand for the safe haven yellow metal.
- On Friday, copper declined 0.8% to close at $10,204.44/mt. Aluminium closed 2% higher at $2,666.82/mt.
CURRENCIES
- On Friday, the South African rand strengthened against the US dollar. In the US, durable goods unexpectedly rose in April. Meanwhile, the Michigan consumer sentiment index deteriorated slightly less than expected in May.
- The yield on benchmark government bonds rose on Friday. The yield on the 2030 bond advanced to 10.41%, while that for the longer-dated 2040 issue rose to 12.69%.
- At 05:30 SAST, the US dollar is trading 0.1% lower against the South African rand at R18.4019, while the euro is trading marginally lower at R19.9761. At 05:30 SAST, the British pound has declined 0.1% against the South African rand to trade at R23.458.
- On Friday, the euro mostly declined against most of the major currencies. In Germany, gross domestic product (GDP) expanded in 1Q24 avoiding a recession. In the UK, retail sales declined more than expected in April as poor weather impacted footfall.
- At 05:30 SAST, the euro advanced 0.1% against the US dollar to trade at $1.0852, while it has slightly gained against the British pound to trade at GBP0.8518.
ECONOMIC UPDATES
- In the UK, retail sales dropped 2.3% on a MoM basis in April, more than market expectations for a drop of 0.4% and compared to a revised drop of 0.2% recorded in the previous month.
- In Germany, gross domestic product (GDP) rose 0.2% on a QoQ basis in 1Q24, in line with market expectations. GDP had recorded a drop of 0.3% in the previous quarter.
- In the US, durable goods orders unexpectedly rose 0.7% in April, compared to a revised rise of 0.8% recorded in the previous month.
- In the US, the Michigan consumer sentiment index fell to a level of 69.10 in May, less than market expectations for a drop to a level of 67.50. The Michigan consumer sentiment index had recorded a level of 77.20 in the previous month.
- In Canada, retail sales unexpectedly declined 0.2% on a MoM basis in March, compared to a drop of 0.1% recorded in the previous month.
CORPORATE UPDATES
SOUTH AFRICA
- Quantum Foods (JO:QFHJ) earnings rise on high egg prices, less load- shedding: High egg prices and a reduction in load-shedding gave a boost to chicken and feed producer Quantum Foods, reporting a surge of more than 650.0% in core earnings in the six months to end-March.