Events that moved the market l Q2 2020
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1 Apr 2020Source: fin24SA car sales crashThe automotive industry, which forms 6.9% of South Africa’s GDP, sees an almost 30% decline in vehicle sales in March compared to the same month last year.
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5 Apr 2020Source: fin24Pam Golding cuts wagesAs an alternative to "more drastic" measures Pam Golding reduces staff members’ working hours and salaries by 30%.
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7 Apr 2020Source:EOH proposes wage cutsEOH proposes across-the-board salary reductions of 20%, except for staff members earning less than approximately R250 000 per year.
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13 Apr 2020Source: Bloomberg NewsOPEC strikes dealThe world’s top oil producers sign historic deal to cut global petroleum output by nearly a tenth.
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14 Apr 2020Source: Bloomberg NewsAB InBev halves dividendAnheuser-Busch InBev halves its proposed dividend, saving about $1.1 billion as the coronavirus pandemic has shut bars and cut beer drinking.
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14 Apr 2020Source: fin24SARB cuts deep againThe SA Reserve Bank cuts the repo rate by 100 basis points, the second major cut in less than a month.
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15 Apr 2020Source: Business Insider South AfricaGold hits R1m/kgThe gold price trades above $1,720 per ounce, making it worth over R1 million a kilogram.
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16 Apr 2020Source: AFPUS SME fund runs dryThe US Small Business Administration unit tasked with managing the US$349 billion COVID-19 program hits the bottom of its funding barrel.
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17 Apr 2020Source: Bloomberg NewsChinese economy shrinksChina experiences its first economic contraction in decades in the first quarter of 2020, with the pandemic leaving China reliant on fragile domestic demand to spur a recovery. Gross domestic product shrinks 6.8% from a year ago.
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20 Apr 2020Source: BloombergOil price drops below zeroIn an unprecedented day of trading, the price for the West Texas Intermediate May oil futures contract trades as low as minus $40.32 with distressed cargoes on the market looking for buyers willing to take delivery.
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21 Apr 2020Source: Statistics SABusiness layoffs: 1 out of 5One in five SA businesses have laid off staff due to the impact of the coronavirus pandemic, according to the results of a new Statistics SA business impact survey. The survey was based on the responses of 707 business across all sectors of the SA economy.
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21 Apr 2020Source: MoneywebSA gets R500bn reliefPresident Ramaphosa announces a R500 billion stimulus package, to mitigate against the disruption of the pandemic.
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24 Apr 2020Source: fin24Landbank defaults on debtThe Land Bank defaults on debt that was due, triggering cross-default on certain other bonds.
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29 Apr 2020Source: BloombergUS shrinks by 4.8%US gross domestic product contracts at 4.8% annualised in the January-March period, the largest drop since 2008.
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29 Apr 2020Source: fin24Edcon files for business rescueEdcon commences with voluntary business rescue proceedings. About R2bn of sales are lost due to the nationwide lockdown.
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30 Apr 2020Source: AFPEU shrinks by 3.5%GDP output in the European Union drops by 3.5%. Also, the number of jobless in Germany soar to 13.2% in April.
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30 Apr 2020Source: BloombergSA downgraded to BB-South Africa is cut deeper into junk by S&P Global Ratings to BB-, three notches below investment-grade.
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5 May 2020Source: fin24Prasa cuts jobsThe Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa (Prasa) proposes voluntary severance packages to union members as its financial position weakens during the pandemic.
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5 May 2020Source: fin24Comair files for business rescueComair, the owner of kulula.com and the local operator for British Airways, implements a business rescue plan as it has not been in operation since 17 March due to flight bans.
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7 May 2020Source: Bloomberg NewsUS joblessness off the chartsInitial jobless claims total 3.17 million in the week ended 2 May. That brings the seven-week total to about 33.5 million.
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7 May 2020Source: ReutersChinese exports pick upThe market mood stabilises globally as Beijing reports a 3.5% rise in April exports, confounding market expectations of a sharp fall, as factories restart output after lockdown, raising hopes of an economic recovery.
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11 May 2020Source: fin24Group Five to delistGroup Five no longer complies with some JSE listing requirements, and is also unable to release its annual results. The construction company's shares will be removed from the JSE on 15 June.
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14 May 2020Source: fin24MTN sees data surgeMTN says data was one of its main drivers of revenue growth in the first financial quarter, as the country was placed under lockdown. It recorded a 26.4 % jump in data revenue in the quarter ended 31 March.
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21 May 2020Source: fin24SARB cuts rates by 50bpsThe Reserve Bank's monetary policy committee votes to cut the repo rate for the fourth time this year, from 4.25% to 3.75%. As a result of the cut, the prime lending rate falls from 7.75% to 7.25%.
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28 May 2020Source: news24SA to lockdown level 3The implementation of alert level 3 from the beginning of June means most sectors can re-start operations, subject to observance of strict health protocols and social distancing rules.
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28 May 2020Source: fin24Barloworld retrenchesLogistics and fleet management company Barloworld announces group-wide retrenchments as it battles the economic shock of Covid-19. Its Avis Budget Rent-a-Car business saw fleet use drop from over 75% before the pandemic to below 30%.
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3 Jun 2020Source: ReutersPMI reaches record lowMarkit’s Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) falls to 32.5 in May from 35.1 in April, its lowest level since the survey began in 2011. All sub-indexes slumped to their lowest on record, with sharp declines in employment and new orders in addition to crumbling output due to lockdown.
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4 Jun 2020Source: ReutersECB stimulus boosts randThe ECB increases its emergency bond purchase scheme by 600 billion euros, more than expected, to 1.35 trillion euros, boosting risk-on assets such as the South African rand.
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5 Jun 2020Source: ReutersNasdaq hits record highThe Nasdaq Composite index hits a record high, recovering from the Covid-19 slump on the back of better-than-expected US unemployment data.
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8 Jun 2020Source: MoneywebWorld Bank sees 5.2% contractionThe World bank forecasts the “deepest global recession since World War II” and the “highest synchronisation of national recessions since 1870”.
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8 Jun 2020Source: MoneywebFortress writes off rental debtFortress becomes the first South African REIT to write off part of its rent due for April and May. It collected only 51.3% of rental due for April and is writing off 26.2% of retail rent for this month, which was worst hit by the lockdown.
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10 Jun 2020Source: fin24Confidence at record lowIn the second quarter of this year, business confidence in South Africa fell to its lowest level ever recorded on the RMB/BER Business Confidence Index, which started in 1975.
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11 Jun 2020Source: BloombergOil stockpile at record highUS crude stockpiles rise by 5.72 million barrels to 538.1 million barrels, the highest level in data compiled by Bloomberg since 1982.
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12 Jun 2020Source: Bloomberg NewsUK economy shrinks by 20%The UK economy contracts a record 20.4% in April as businesses were stymied in lockdown. The contraction means the nation has effectively seen almost 18 years of growth wiped out in two months.
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16 Jun 2020Source: Bloomberg NewsUK unemployment doublesThe number of people claiming unemployment in the UK increases by more than 1.5 million in the two months through May to nearly 3 million.
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19 Jun 2020Source: fin24Cell C starts restructuringCell C launches a retrenchment consultation process impacting 960, or nearly 40%, of its 2 500 employees.
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23 Jun 2020Source: Statistics SASA unemployment hits 18-year highSA's unemployment rate jumps from 29.1% to 30.1%. The last time unemployment was above 30% was in the third quarter of 2002, when it reached 30.4%.
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24 Jun 2020Source: Statistics SASA inflation at 15-year lowSA consumer inflation slows to 3.0% year-on-year in April, its lowest in nearly 15 years. On a year-on-year basis, only food prices increased.
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30 Jun 2020Source: Statistics SASA recession continuesThe SA economy records its third consecutive quarter of economic decline, falling by 2.0% in Q1 of 2020. This is after a contraction of -1.4% and -0.8% in the fourth and third quarters of 2019.
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