Green Friday: Top 40 inches higher on bank reshuffle
StockTalk Team
The JSE found its footing on Friday, with RMI's surprise surge and a late flurry in industrials lifting the mood just enough to close in the black.
The scoreboard
The Top 40 printed a modest gain of approximately 1.02 percent, a rare cheerful ending to the week. RMI led the charge with a remarkable pop, while property funds and the dollar-exposed names took the usual lumps. Volume stayed respectable across the big retail and financial holdings, suggesting at least someone was paying attention despite it being Friday afternoon.
Winners of the day
| Stock | Move |
|---|---|
| Rand Merchant Inv HLDGS LTD (RMI) Rand Merchant finally remembered it has a pulse. Up 16.67% and making everyone wonder what they missed. |
+16.67% |
| Sebata Holdings LTD (SEB) Sebata climbing hard; investors apparently still believe in construction and infrastructure. |
+8.43% |
| Sappi LTD (SAP) Sappi boards the pulp-price rally. Blame China's appetite for packaging, thank logistics. |
+7.84% |
| Huge Group LTD (HUG) Huge Group proving size does matter. Up 7% on... let's call it cautious optimism. |
+7.06% |
| Thungela Resources LTD (TGA) Thungela riding the coal cycle higher. Just don't ask about the long-term thesis. |
+6.66% |
Losers of the day
| Stock | Move |
|---|---|
| Rmb Holdings LTD (RMH) RMB Holdings tanked 12.50%. When your own flagship stumbles, even Rand Merchant can't save you. |
-12.50% |
| Delta Property Fund LTD (DLT) Delta Property down 8.33%. The property fund exodus continues; investors still terrified of Johannesburg office parks. |
-8.33% |
| Gemfields Group Limited (GML) Gemfields fell 5.88%. Precious stones prove precious little to retail appetite right now. |
-5.88% |
| Arcelormittal SA Limited (ACL) ArcelorMittal sliding 4.96%. Steel prices and rand strength make for an ugly afternoon. |
-4.96% |
| Montauk Renewables INC (MKR) Montauk Renewables off 4.90%. Even green energy can't escape the gravity of a cautious Friday. |
-4.90% |
Why it happened
RMI's extraordinary leap suggests a sizable reallocation: retail and institutional money finally moving out of the property wreckage (Delta, Redefine) and back into financials with actual earnings. The Daily Investor's piece on Absa losing its decade-long battle hints at a broader reshuffling of banking preferences, and if that money is flowing to Rand Merchant, you're looking at a bet on diversified financial services and offshore resilience. Meanwhile, industrials like Sappi and Huge caught a bid on commodity tailwinds and construction buzz; Thungela's coal bounce reflects old-school energy demand creeping back into the narrative, at least for Friday.
The dollar trades running hot at Standard Bank (cutting the US greenback out of China trade) and the general mood around gold's scarcity (Duarte da Silva's piece on South Africa's unmined 48,000 tonnes) kept the resource story alive. Property funds got walloped again, a reminder that the office and retail sectors are still persona non grata. The Two-Pot retirement reform chatter in the background adds noise to the medium-term outlook, but it's not moving daily prices yet.
What to watch tomorrow
- Monday's opening: watch whether RMI's surge holds or rolls over. A reversal signals Friday was a trap; sustained strength means real rotation is afoot. Keep an eye on Absa and FirstRand as the banking proxy.
- China's weekend data (manufacturing, property). If Beijing disappoints again, Sappi and the commodity plays will reprice downward come Monday morning. And watch the rand. A weaker currency could rescue property and mining; a strong one pressures everything dollar-exposed.
Join the post-market debrief →
Friday's green close is nice, but don't spend it yet. The market's attention span is shorter than a Johannesburg power cut.
Not financial advice. Just an honest look at what happened. Invest at your own peril.
Related articles
Enjoyed this article?
Get the weekly JSE digest — market recaps, sentiment data, and top analysis, every Sunday.