SA Company News:
The Johannesburg Stock Exchange All-Share Index closed 0.82% higher at the 89 713 level.
Pepkor Holdings Limited announced that they are strengthening its position in the adult apparel market by acquiring the Legit, Swagga, Style and Boardmans brands from Retailability. The move aims to increase its market share in the adult wear category, where it has traditionally lagged behind competitors such as Mr Price, TFG, Truworths, and Woolworths. The acquisition, which excludes the Edgars, Red Square, Kelso, and Keedo brands, will add 462 stores across South Africa, Botswana, Lesotho, Namibia, and Eswatini to Pepkor’s existing retail footprint. The Legit brand, in particular, will boost Pepkor’s presence in the women’s apparel segment, which is projected to dominate South Africa’s $6 billion apparel market by 2025. The acquisition represents less than 2% of Pepkor’s R97 billion market capitalization and is subject to regulatory approval.
SA Economy:
The FNB/BER Consumer Confidence Index dropped sharply to -20 in the first quarter of 2025, down from -6 in the previous quarter and reaching its lowest level since Q2 2023. This marks the second consecutive decline in consumer sentiment, driven by concerns over the recent budget proposal to increase the VAT rate.
The official unemployment rate declined to 31.9% in the fourth quarter of 2024 (down 0.2 percentage points from Q3). The non-agricultural sector added 12 000 jobs in Q4 2024, reaching a total employment of 10.64 million. The unemployment rate fell previously to 32.1% in Q3 2024 after 294 000 jobs were created.
Global Economy:
The IFO Business Climate indicator for Germany rose to 86.7 in March 2025, its highest level since July and in line with market expectations, with businesses optimistic about a recovery following the parliament’s approval of a massive infrastructure and defense spending plan.
The S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller 20-city home price index in the U.S. rose 4.7% year-on-year in January, up from 4.5% in December, but falling short of the expected 4.8% increase.
Consumer confidence in the U.S fell for the fourth month in March, dropping to 92.9 vs 94 estimate, below the 100.1 seen in February and at the lowest level in more than four years.
The annual inflation rate in the UK fell to 2.8% in February 2025 from 3% in January, below market expectations of 2.9% and the annual core inflation rate eased to 3.5% in February 2025 from January’s nine-month high of 3.7%, slightly below market expectations of 3.6%.
Global Company:
The FTSE 100 closed 0.3% higher at 8 663.
The Hang Seng Index is trading 0.07% higher at 23 365.
The tech index dropped 3.8%, with Xiaomi down 6.1% after announcing a $5.27 billion share sale. Alibaba fell nearly 4% due to rising data centre costs and Sunny Optical plunged 9.9% over capacity concerns. Consumer and financial stocks were also lower.
In China, the Shanghai Composite is down 0.08% at 3 367.
U.S markets closed near the flatline due to investor concerns over upcoming tariffs and economic uncertainty. The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed unchanged at 42 587, while the S&P 500 closed 0.16% higher at 5 776.
Tesla rose 3.4%, while Nvidia fell 0.6%. KB Home dropped 5.1% after cutting its sales forecast.
GameStop shares rose more than 6% after the company released its quarterly results and said it will add Bitcoin as a treasury reserve asset.
Trump Media & Technology Group was up 6% after the company announced a partnership with Crypto.com to launch a series of exchange-traded funds (ETFs) and products.
Commodities:
Gold is trading higher by 0.09% at $3 023/oz, while Platinum is lower by 0.97% to $969.80/oz.
Brent crude was 0.31% higher at $73.26 a barrel.
Currency:
The rand traded at R18.27 against the US Dollar, R23.64 against British Pound and R19.71 against the Euro.
The Euro is slightly weaker against the US Dollar to trade at $1.0785.
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| Market Indicators | |||||||
| Commodities $ | Cross Currencies ($) | Major Indices | |||||
| Gold | 3023.20 | 0.09% | USD/ZAR | 18.27 | Top40 | 82312.20 | 0.84% |
| Platinum | 969.80 | -0.97% | GBP/ZAR | 23.64 | Dow 30 | 42587.50 | 0.01% |
| Brent | 73.26 | 0.31% | EUR/ZAR | 19.71 | S&P 500 | 5776.65 | 0.16% |
| Copper | 5.28 | 3.22% | EUR/USD | 1.0785 | FTSE | 8663.80 | 0.30% |
| Palladium | 957.79 | 0.07% | USD/JPY | 150.47 | DAX | 23109.79 | 1.11% |
| Iron Ore | 101.50 | -0.30% | BITCOIN | 87545.33 | Shanghai | 3367.22 | -0.08% |
| Source: FACTSET | |||||||