Morning report (26.5)

Local equities closed higher yesterday on the back of stronger than expected GDP data, despite the currency gaining almost 1% against the dollar.

Nico Kelder, economist at the Efficient Group reports that the rand weakened slightly against the euro and pound as the dollar weakened against the euro.

Yields on the bond closed lower (higher price) despite the possibility of interest rate hikes. Gold and platinum’s prices shone brightly as they took advantage of the weaker dollar while the oil price declined by almost 2%.

European markets closed slightly weaker yesterday while US markets soared by 1.6- 2.2%. This positive news spilled over to the Far East as the Nikkei (Japan) is trading almost 2% higher while the Hang Seng (Hong Kong) is closed this morning.

We expect that equities should trade higher today on the back of strong US markets while the bond market will wait for the CPI data later today.