Platinum miners soar on JSE

(Fin24) - A record platinum price hit on Monday underpinned a robust performance among platinum mining stocks on the JSE, giving the bourse an extra boost and helping it close 1.61% higher.

By the end of trade, the platinum mining index had advanced 6.97%, and resources collected 2.28%. The gold mining index was only a mere 0.09% in the black though. Banks and financials gained 1.84% and 1.44% respectively, and
industrials recovered 0.85%.

The rand was bid at R6.74 to the dollar from R6.79 when the JSE closed on Friday, while gold was quoted at $902.50 a troy ounce from $891.45/oz at the JSE's last close.

During the day, gold hit a record high of $914.40/oz, while platinum reached new highs of $1,590/oz.

"The JSE is up, but off its best levels. It has been quite an ironic day where the gold price hit an all time high, but there was a fluctuation in gold shares with a disappointing performance by gold shares relative to the huge gain in the gold price," said a Johannesburg-based equities trader.

He added that platinum shares "just exploded" as a result of the new record platinum price, and gains in heavyweights like Anglo American and BHP Billiton lifted the JSE higher.
 

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