I think we are getting a real taste of how it works in Europe with football idols and entire countries that ebb and flow based on a tournament held every few years. This Springbok team is the closest thing we'ver ever had to this level of shared passion as a country. They are so intimidating that even the Joburg trains spring into life at the mere sight of them! Best of all, if we do ever reach paparazzi-style reporting where these guys can barely get around town without being mobbed, we have a few reasonably large okes in that team who are used to dispersing a crowd of irritating people in their way.

The markets aren't quite as consistent as the Boks unfortunately, which is why it's always good to pay attention to what comes out on SENS each day. For example, Truworths is struggling with its local business, as confirmed by their numbers on Friday. Over at KAP, which has a variety of underlying businesses, only one of them is really performing the way that it should. KAP reminds me of a sports team built around one or two key players. When they have a rough day, the team loses.

Other updates include Finbond, Murray & Roberts and Northam Platinum, as well as a vast array of Little Bites that included updates from some of the smaller counters on the JSE, like Ascendis, AfroCentric, DRA Global and Putprop, just to name a few. Get what you need in Ghost Bites here>>>

Moving on, Truworths was the subject of a pairs trading concept that we discussed in the latest episode of The Trader's Handbook, alongside Mr Price. This is a great, real-world example of the types of trades that look interesting, as well as the importance of mitigating risk - especially when they don't work out as planned. Nobody gets it right 100% of the time and traders are experts at understanding that they are playing a game of statistics. For terrific insights into how trading really works from IG Markets South Africa, you'll check out the podcast here>>>

Over at Magic Markets, we made a quantum leap in the past week - into quantum computing, which is starting to look like a very interesting investment trend that hasn't attracted the levels of hype that have been a feature of AI. Global geopolitical analyst Dimitri Zabelin joined us to give an overview of the opportunity. You'll find the insights here>>>>

Finally, Dominique Olivier's latest piece is a fascinating look at how humans will smuggle just about anything - even sand. Yes, people steal and sell sand. Where there's a market, there's a way. And aside from the obvious legal consequences, nature sometimes dishes out her own punishment. Be entertained and learn something new in Dominique's latest piece available here>>>

Have a great start to your week!

The Gap Inc share price did some crazy things last week, with trading being halted temporarily after an "administrative error" led to results being posted on the website before going out on the official stock exchange systems. That's a very big no-no, especially in the US where the SEC will be breathing down your neck at speed.

Aside from that mistake, the good news is that Gap beat their second-quarter earnings and revenue estimates and gave a better outlook for profit margin. That's quite different to what we've seen elsewhere in US retail recently, but remember that beating expectations doesn't mean that a company has objectively done well. It just means they did better than they thought they were going to!

This week, we are diving into Ulta Beauty on Magic Markets Premium. If you're keen to get the latest on the company, as well as access to our vast library of stock research notes based on our work in the markets and what we do with our own money, then take out a subscription for just R99/month. Thank me later.

US and European index futures are testing near-term highs following Friday’s better than expected inflation data. Asian equity benchmarks, the Hang Seng and Shanghai Composite, are however trading lower as concerns around the health of the region's property sector resurface.

Chinese data is weighing on demand side sentiment in the resource space, where counters are driving a near-term underperformance of the JSE All-Share Index relative to its US and European peers.

The dollar index has strengthened over the last few days and we are seeing the rand marginally weaker this morning.

Gold continues to consolidate its recent gains between levels $2,485/oz and $2,530/oz.

Oil prices have renewed their decline after Chinese data suggested a weaker demand outlook for the commodity. The expectation that OPEC+ will look to increase output by October is creating supply side concerns, further weighing on oil prices.

Key Indicators: USD/ZAR R17.85/$ | US 10yr 3.90% | Gold $2,496/oz | Platinum $931/oz | Brent Crude $76.32

The macroeconomic update is based on IG's morning call update