Building blocks?

Nico Kelder, economist at the Efficient Group says that construction was the biggest gainer, increasing by almost 1%.

The currency dipped 0.6% against the dollar. South African bonds ended weaker on Thursday as the currency dropped back.

Commodities lost some ground with platinum, oil and gold all ending in the red. European markets closed in the red, with the CAC 40 and the DAX both closing down by more than 1%. US markets responded negatively to increasing fuel prices.

Both the US producer inflation and industrial production data was better than expected, combined with good results from Apple giving some support to the US markets. The Nikkei 225 and the Hang Seng is currently trading up, the Hang Seng closed early due to a typhoon warning.

No fireworks are expected on local markets.