Money SA economy
South African stocks traded sideways in the midday session with an eye on month end.
At 12pm the JSE all share index had gained 0.02%, with resources down 0.53%. Platinum producers edged 0.43% lower and gold counters slipped 0.13% lower. Banks added 0.10%, financials were flat, up 0.03%, and industrials were 0.54% higher.
A local trader said: "There is very little action at present, stocks are trading sideways with very little direction. Locally stocks are probably biased towards the positive at month end."
Dow Jones Newswire reports that US stocks are called to open lower Friday, in a modest pullback after the strong rally led by financial stocks Thursday, said David Morrison at GFT. He called the DJIA down 30 points at 9,932 and the S&P 500 down 3 at 1,063.
While the strong GDP number gave traders a good excuse to buy stocks after four consecutive weak sessions, there is still concern that without the stimulus programs, the US would still be in recession," added Morrison.
Personal income and employment cost index are at 12:30 GMT. Chicago PMI and University of Michigan consumer sentiment are at 13:45 GMT and 13:55 GMT respectively.
On the JSE, Anglo American plc dropped 73 cents to R294.75 and BHP Billiton shed R3.49, or 1.58%, to R217.42. Petrochemicals group Sasol gained R1.27 to R301.87.
