Sanlam Private Wealth Morning Digest 20 August 2019

Local Markets

A slump in retailers weighed on the JSE on Tuesday, with the All Share index ending in negative territory despite trading higher earlier on in the day. By the close, the J203 had fallen 0.19% as it moved to settle at 54,280.80 index points, compared with a 0.21% decline in the Top 40. Food and drug retailers were among the worst performers, down 3.06%, with Shoprite slumping 9.25% after it released its latest results. In addition, the resource index lost 0.64% as BHP Group shed 2.66% following the release of its results. Finally, the gold mining index bucked the trend after it added 3.79%, supported by a 3.82% increase in Harmony.

American Markets

Wall Street endured a tough session of trade on Tuesday, with indices ending at their session lows, impacted by sustained concerns regarding the strength of the US economy as well as political developments in Europe. Overall, the S&P 500 shed 0.79% to lead the region’s losses as it moved to settle at just above the 2,900 index point level. Furthermore, the NASDAQ lost 0.68% by the close, followed closely by a 0.66% drop in the Dow Jones. Finally, among specific shares, Home Depot gained 4.4% after it released upbeat quarterly results, while Medtronic also ended 2.62% higher after issuing its results.