The JSE closed lower on Thursday, as a weaker rand in late afternoon trade came too late to support a meaningful turnaround in the mining and industrial sectors. The rand weakened to R12.9363/$ at the JSE’s close from R12.8352/$. General retailers and banks were under pressure following the news released on Tuesday that SA was officially in recession, following two consecutive quarters of economic contraction. "The experience has been that banks and retailers are usually hit hard in a recession," said Herenya Capital Advisors trader Petri Redelinghuys. Redelinghuys said the JSE’s performance had been disappointing this week. The market had been trading sideways over the past three years, consolidating at levels of about 52,000 points. "Now it seems unlikely the market will take a growth path over the short-term soon." He said mining and manufacturing data released on Thursday painted a grim picture of the economy. "The recession may be the tip of the iceberg and cash could become ki...
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