The JSE is likely to have a choppy session on Tuesday, given the mixed signals from Asian markets.

Mining stocks are likely to move lower amid broadly weaker commodity prices, while the rand changed hands at R13.78/$, its weakest level in two weeks.

Investec chief economist Annabel Bishop attributed retreat in the local currency to rising Covid-19 cases in SA, particularly in Gauteng, the country’s economic hub

“There has been a geometric expansion of new Covid-19 cases in Gauteng, and the seven-day rolling average for the country’s most productive province is now close to the peaks of the first and second waves. Load-shedding too has been negative for the currency,” Bishop wrote in a note.

Elsewhere, the local share market has held up well so far despite the country entering third wave of Covid-19 infections.

Share prices of banks, insurance, leisure and hotel and property companies continue on their road to recovery after hitting a soft patch when the pandemic started more than a year ago.

Brent crude was relatively flat at $73.16 a barrel, holding near its best level in two years.

The outcome of the US Federal Reserve’s policy meeting on Wednesday will be the main event for the markets this week. The central bank is widely expected to keep interest rates unchanged at record lows, but will give a fresh indication on how it sees consumer inflation playing in the coming months.

Global markets have been fixating on whether the current cycle of US consumer inflation, which hit its highest level in 12 years in May on an annual basis, is temporary or more lasting.

The US Fed has previously indicated that higher inflation will be transitory, implying that it will not scale back its loose monetary policy, a pillar of support for global markets.

mahlangua@businesslive.co.za