South African equities held firm on Wednesday, with the FTSE/JSE All Share Index remaining above the key 99,000-point mark. Early-session gains in consumer services and retail trade sectors helped offset weakness in electronic and health technology stocks, reflecting a mixed but steady investor sentiment.
Attention now turns to Thursday’s South African Reserve Bank (SARB) policy meeting, where markets widely anticipate a 25-basis point interest rate cut—the third such move this year. A reduction would offer much-needed relief to cash-strapped consumers and could provide a near-term lift for household-focused and retail-linked equities.
In addition, investors are eyeing June’s Producer Price Index (PPI) and trade balance figures for further economic direction. Expectations of a wider trade surplus and moderating input costs may help improve outlooks across key sectors.
Still, longer-term growth concerns remain. The IMF’s subdued 1% GDP forecast for 2025 underscores ongoing structural challenges, including inefficiencies in logistics, energy supply, and the performance of state-owned enterprises.
“While rate cuts and trade data may deliver short-term boosts, meaningful reform remains critical for unlocking South Africa’s full economic potential,” said Daniel Wesonga, Senior Sales Manager at Pepperstone.
