Local bourse closes weaker as SA GDP beats forecasts

The JSE erased earlier gains to close softer on Tuesday, as broad-based weakness swept global stocks.

Locally, investors eagerly awaited SA's fourth quarter GDP data, which was released by Statistics SA in the morning. It showed that the economy grew by 1.4% in the fourth quarter of 2018, slightly above the forecast of 1.2% growth. Annual real GDP increased by a 0.8% in 2018.

There was no significant reaction in the rand, however, which mostly traded firmer on the day. At 17.00, it was trading at R14.14/$.

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On the local bourse Delta Property Fund [JSE:DLT] endured another tough trading session, falling 9.18% to close at R1.78. Accelerate Property Fund [JSE:APF] dropped 8.43% to close at R3.15, while Texton Property Fund [JSE:TEX] lost 5.56% to close at R4.25.

Hyprop Investments [JSE:HYP], meanwhile, weakened to R80.05 after shedding 2.5%.

Royal Bafokeng Platinum [JSE:RBP] came under pressure despite returning to profitability as indicated in its full-year results. The stock closed 6.34% lower at R30.90.

Rand hedge, Richemont [JSE:CFR], weakened by 4.37% to end the day at R104.69, while Bidvest [JSE:BVT] lost 2.76% to close at R206.00.

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Exxaro Resources [JSE:EXX] came under pressure despite releasing a positive trading update for its financial year. The share fell 4.11% to close at R143.36.

EOH Holdings [JSE:EOH] was one of the day’s biggest gainers, as it advanced 9.88% to close at R19.90.

Resilient [JSE:RES] gained 3.58% to close at R62.56, while its industry peer, Fortress REIT [JSE:FFB] climbed 2.96% to close at R13.55.

Remgro [JSE:REM] managed to add 1.65% to close at R204.50, while Imperial Logistics [JSE:IPL] rose 1.73% to end the day at R64.19.

Nedbank [JSE:NED] was buoyant on the back of positive earnings indicated in its full-year results, as well as a firmer rand. The share added 0.22% to close at R272.00, while Standard Bank [JSE:SBK] gained 0.97% to close at R190.26.

All-Share and Top-40 down

The JSE All-Share index closed 0.81% weaker, while the blue-chip JSE Top-40 index lost 0.72%. All the major indices closed in the red with Industrials dropping 1.15%. The Financials and Resources indices shed 0.21% and 0.51% respectively.