The JSE jumped on Tuesday after South African GDP data released by StatsSA came in higher than market estimates.

South Africa’s GDP annualized quarter-on-quarter number was recorded at 3.1% which beat estimates of 1.8%. The year-on-year number was recorded at 1.5% which is higher than the prior recording of 0.8%.

A combination of this GDP data and a weaker US dollar saw the Rand firming against the greenback by more than 0.5% to reach an intra-day high of R11.71/$. The Rand was trading at R11.75/$ at 17.00 CAT.

The JSE opened firmer and continued to climb for the entirety of today’s trading session as the bullish sentiment particularly in the banking and finance sectors continued. Truworths International [JSE:TRU] led from the front as it gained 6.12% to close at R111.40 per share, whilst other retailers such as Pick n Pay [JSE:PIK] and Shoprite [JSE:SHP] gained 4.50% and 2.78% respectively. Fortress B [JSE:FFB] and Resilient [JSE:RES] found some relief as they gained 5.10% and 3.07% on the day.

Anglo American PLC [JSE:AGL] had a good day out as it gained 4.65% to close at R285.84 per share, whilst Sappi [JSE:SAP] and Bidvest [JSE:BVT] gained 2.85% and 3.09% respectively. Tiger Brands [JSE:TBS] gained 2.45% despite the current recall of some of their products from supermarket shelves due to the listeriosis outbreak. Other processed food stocks such as Astral Foods [JSE:ARL] and RCL Foods [JSE:RCL] gained 7.15% and 2.28% respectively, whilst Clover Industries [JSE:CLR] jumped 3.68% on the back of a decent set of earnings results.

A couple of blue chip stocks were marginally lower, particularly Vodacom [JSE:VOD] and British American Tobacco [JSE:BTI] which lost 0.51% and 0.83% respectively. On the broader index Brait [JSE:BAT] lost 2.49% to close at R40.75 per share, whilst Murray & Roberts [JSE:MUR] and Adcock Ingram [JSE:AIP] shed 1.23% and 1.71% respectively. Tradehold [JSE:TDH] and Cashbuild [JSE:CSB] were among the biggest losers as they lost 6.92% and 3.96% respectively.

It was a good day out for all the major indices on the JSE as they all closed in the green. The JSE All-Share Index jumped 2.30% whilst the blue-chip Top-40 Index gained 2.42%. The Resources Index was the biggest gainer as it climbed 3.41%. The Financials Index gained 2.08% whilst the Industrials Index firmed by 2.17%.

Despite a minor slip in the early morning session Brent Crude quickly rebounded to reach a day’s high of $66.16/barrel. Just after the JSE close it had retraced and it was trading at $65.68/barrel.

Gold gained some momentum as the US dollar slid. The precious metal peaked at $1334.17/Oz before it retraced to trade at $1331.99/Oz just after the JSE close.

Platinum traded in the red briefly but it also had a sharp spike higher due to the weaker US dollar to peak at $968.84/Oz. The metal was trading at $966.19/Oz just after the close. A similar pattern was recorded in Palladium and just after the close it was recorded at $987.30/Oz.