Johannesburg - The JSE opened relatively flat on Wednesday, propped up by mining stocks, but amid mixed signals from abroad.
By 09:13 local time, the JSE all share index was up 0.10%, with gold counters 0.68% firmer, resources added 0.15%, and platinum miners were flat.
Industrials were 0.6% softer, but banks firmed 0.29% and financials picked up 0.34%.
The rand was trading at R7.17 to the dollar from R7.18 at the JSE's close on Tuesday. Gold was quoted at $1 365.34 a troy ounce from $1 364.47/oz at the JSE's previous close, while platinum was at $1 863.50/oz from $1 849.50/oz before.
"We saw mining shares come off quite a bit yesterday afternoon, including Anglo American [JSE:AGL] and BHP Billiton [JSE:BHP]. This morning mining stocks lead the way with investors possibly seeing a few opportunities."
Dow Jones Newswires reported that Asian stock markets were mixed on Wednesday, as support from gains in US shares was partly offset by news of an interest rate hike in China on Tuesday.
Japan's Nikkei Stock Average was down 0.2%, Australia's S&P/ASX 200 was 0.3% higher, and South Korea's Kospi Composite lost 1.1%. Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index lost 0.6%, and the Shanghai Composite index was flat.
Shares in China opened lower in a knee-jerk reaction to Tuesday's interest rate hike, as investors there returned from the week-long lunar new-year holidays. However, the market quickly managed to pare most of its losses as the rate hike was widely predicted.
