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Good morning Voornaam,

We had a really interesting day of news on the JSE yesterday. Trellidor is tiny in the context of listed companies, but it's somewhat less tiny today after a 42% jump in just one day. The key driver of performance is Trellidor UK - bet you didn't expect to read that!

Pan African Resources has now released detailed interim results and I think there are reasons to believe that this could be a solid tactical entry point. Predicting the gold price is impossible of course, but I do enjoy it when the market panics in response to something that doesn't look nearly as bad as the share price move would suggest.

In less inspiring news, I'm afraid that earnings fell at both KAP and Northam Platinum. I can understand the PGM story at Northam. As for KAP, one wonders if things will ever meaningfully improve there. There always seems to be something dragging their earnings down.

Get these details and the Nibbles in Ghost Bites this morning>>>

The Budget Speech is looming and that's always an important time of the year for South Africans. To help you understand what to expect and what to look out for, Investec's latest episode of No Ordinary Wednesday features Annabel Bishop, Tertia Jacobs and Chris Holdsworth in conversation with media stalwart Jeremy Maggs. You need to invest just over 20 minutes of your time to make sure you are well prepared for Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana's big day. Enjoy it here>>>

The rent vs. buy debate is always relevant and property is a hot topic in South Africa. I have a somewhat unorthodox approach to this issue, as discussed with Duma Mxenge of Satrix in this great podcast>>>

Have a great day!

INVESTEC: International Opportunities Limited - a Chinese equity structured product

China is a land that is fraught with risk and brimming with opportunity. With enhanced upside as well as downside protection, International Opportunities Limited is a structured product that seeks to balance the risks and rewards available in Chinese equity markets.

International Opportunities Limited offers 1.3x geared exposure to the CSI 300 Index, capped at 60% growth for a maximum return of 78% in USD. In addition, there is 100% capital protection at maturity in USD.

Japie Lubbe of Investec Structured Products joined me to discuss the structure in detail. Get it here>>>

SATRIX: 2025 kick-off and fresh views on rent vs. buy

Covering a range of personal finance topics and emerging trends in investing, your 2025 kick-off with Duma Mxenge from Satrix is here. And of course, we couldn't resist talking about property. This led to an in-depth discussion on how I'm approaching the rent vs. buy conundrum. Enjoy it here>>>

GHOST WRAP: Retailers on sale on the JSE - a review of the first few weeks of 2025

The retail sector got off to a very poor start in 2025. With practically the entire sector down, are there stocks that were punished more than they should've been? This podcast is a useful summary of recent retail updates across the clothing and grocery sectors, as well as other relevant areas. You can find the recording and the transcript (with charts) at this link>>>

GHOST STORIES: Sustainability, the Spar way

Kevin O’Brien is incredibly passionate about his work as the Group Sustainability Executive at Spar. Having stuck with the group through tumultuous recent times, Kevin is focused on Spar’s role as a corporate citizen in South Africa and the European markets in which it operates.

There’s an important difference between governing sustainably and the governance of sustainability. Kevin does a great job of explaining it in this podcast>>>

GHOST BITES - Making sense of SENS on the local market

Trellidor had a day to remember. Pan African Resources looks interesting to me. Sadly, earnings fell at both KAP and Pan African Resources. Get the details in Ghost Bites>>>

DOMINIQUE OLIVIER - Spotify: mafia tactics that work!

What does the world’s most popular music streaming service have in common with the mob? Aside from some playlists of Italian classics, only its (very effective) conversion strategy. Dominique Olivier explains why subscribing to Spotify Premium feels like paying protection money and why that works so well. Read it here>>>

Budget 2025 - what to expect

In this special edition of No Ordinary Wednesday, Investec experts Chief Economist Annabel Bishop, Treasury Economist Tertia Jacobs and Chief Investment Strategist Chris Holdsworth share their predictions for Budget 2025. Find this insightful episode here>>>

International Business Snippet:

After McDonald's released earnings earlier this week that missed revenue estimates, it was the turn of Restaurant Brands International - the owners of Burger King and other brands. They beat on earnings and revenue, which reflects my personal experience when eating Burger King vs. McDonald's on those rare occasions when I punish my body.

Same-store sales growth of 2.5% isn't exactly a Whopper, but at least it's in the right direction. The same can't be said for the share price, which is down 12% over 12 months vs. McDonald's up 7%. Over 5 years, McDonald's is up 42% and Restaurant Brands is down 2%. Apparently, my burger preferences are a poor indicator of returns.

Our latest research in Magic Markets Premium is on 3M as a company with a proud history of innovation in the industrials space. Having previously lost its way, a strong turnaround effort is taking place and is already showing strong results. Our subscribers can enjoy our detailed work on this company, complementing some of our other recent reports with similar turnaround opportunities.

Magic Markets: Tariff Tantrum

Magic Markets: Remember the "taper tantrum" that people used to talk about in the markets over 10 years ago? It was based on a major change to monetary policy and the market didn't like that. These days, the uncertainty seems to be related to Trump's tariff strategies and the related chaos. We discuss how each country has retaliated (and South Africa's relative strength or weakness in that regard) in this podcast>>>

Macroeconomic indicators

News of Trump’s peacekeeping efforts between Russia and the Ukraine look to have overshadowed news of lower than expected inflation in the world’s largest economy, allowing major US indices to close near the highs of yesterday’s session.

European equity benchmarks have pushed further into new high territory on peace talks, while the Hang Seng and Shanghai Composite are seeing substantial gains led by the tech sector.

Strangely enough we have seen US Yields trading higher, despite some weakness in the US dollar.

The JSE All-Share Index is expected to open higher, while the rand remains firm on a softer greenback.

Oil prices saw a significant selloff yesterday on the suggestion that a ceasefire or end to the Ukraine / Russian war could see sanctions on Russia eased which would increase supply of the commodity to market.

Gold continues to trade near all time highs on trade war concerns.

Traders will want to keep an eye out for UK GDP and Weekly US Unemployment Claims data out today.

Key Indicators: USD/ZAR R18.45/$ | US 10yr 4.60% | Gold $2,920/oz | Platinum $1,000/oz | Brent Crude $74.20

As often as practically possible, insights from the IG Markets morning macro update by Shaun Murison will be featured here. Where this isn't possible, only indicators will be provided. If you want to learn more about trading, refer back to The Trader's Handbook, a podcast series that takes you through many of the important principles in trading.