The JSE All Share closed 0.27% higher on Wednesday, with rising gold mining shares leading gains almost across the board. 187,909,741 shares were exchanged in 170 352 trades during the day, equal in value to R14,275,431,745. A US dollar cost R9.87, while a British pound cost R15.69 at 5pm.
Gold had fallen 0.91% to sell at $1270.04 an ounce, while Brent crude oil dipped 0.54% to $110.44 a barrel. US markets were up at close of day in SA, with the Dow Jones rising 1.21%, the S&P 500 gaining 1.21% and the Nasdaq higher by 1.06%.
European markets were mixed, with the German DAX up 0.52%, the CAC40 down 0.22%, and the FTSE 100 gaining 0.30%.
Investors showed renwed optimism that the US government will reach agreement on the budget and raising of the debt ceiling in time for tomorrow’s deadline. Should this date be missed, however, the US will not be able to borrow further and could begin missing debt repayments in the next two weeks. The lack of progress on negotiations has in the meantime raised the possibility of a credit downgrade, according to analysts.
Share price news
Top mover upwards today was Spanjaard (SPA) in the speciality chemicals sector, whose shares climbed 21.25% after 1 deal traded 3,600 shares, sending the share price up to R4.85 by close of day. Next in line was Diamondcorp PLC (DMC), whose shares soared 20.83% to sell at R1.45 after investors traded 100 shares in just 1 deal.
Top loser on Wednesday was Central Rand Gold (CRD), whose shares fell to R2.10 after 4,515 shares were exchanged in 4 deals, a loss in share price of 23.64%. Also in the gold mining sector, Randgold & Exploration Company (RNG) slid 15.29% to R2.16, after investors bought and sold 17,650 shares in 5 deals.
