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Bloomberg
South Africa’s main stock benchmark was little changed in early trading on Wednesday as weakness in banks and index heavyweight Richemont countered gains in miners and index giant Naspers Ltd.
Investors are awaiting the conclusion of a Federal Reserve meeting to gauge the extent of central bank support for the economic recovery. The Fed is expected to maintain its dovish stance after earlier saying it will shift to a more relaxed approach on inflation. Central bank stimulus has been shoring up sentiment in the face of risks from the coronavirus pandemic, the US presidential election and the possibility of a no-deal Brexit.
Diversified miners BHP Group Plc and Anglo American Plc lead the gauge for resource stocks, up 1% and BHP rises 1.7% after the miner says it will benefit most from a global shift towards faster and more dramatic measures to address climate change, and aims to profit from doing so itself.
While Anglo American rises 0.9%, Anglo American Platinum Ltd. surges by 3.3%, and Impala Platinum Holdings Ltd. gains 1.4%. Northam Platinum Ltd. rises 1.8% and Gold Fields Ltd. gains as much as 0.5%. Exxaro Resources Ltd. rises 2.1%.
Discovery Ltd. drops 2.2% after headline earnings fall 94% and company skips dividend payment on Covid uncertainty. Naspers extends gains to a sixth session, the longest winning streak since February 7.
Stock climbs 0.3% as Tencent Holdings Ltd. advances in Hong Kong. Naspers holds a minority stake in the tech giant.
Richemont falls for a second day, down 0.4% after adjusting for the stock going ex-dividend; SBG Securities downgrades the luxury company to sell.