The Ewing Trust Quarterly News

During the last quarter under review the JSE All Share Index rose to over 80,000. This, coupled with a relatively strong rand, shows that local and global investors were mostly positive about South African stocks.

The South African stock exchange ended the financial year on a satisfactory note. However, there is a significant divergence in the underlying performance between those that are rand hedged in nature and those that are South African incorporated and focused on the local business environment.

The local and global markets enjoyed some positivity, as central banks kept interest rates on hold. There is a glimmer of hope that inflation, globally, may be getting under control, which could in time, lead to interest rate cuts.

The last quarter under review saw continued increases in interest rates by central banks, in order to combat the rampantly high inflation environment globally.

The first financial quarter of the year has proved to be volatile despite one of the fastest increasing interest rate cycles in history as inflation remains stubbornly above most Central Bank target ranges.

The financial year under review was a difficult one for the global economy, which has been driven by higher than expected global inflation. This was further fueled by the Central Banks raising interest rates which dried up liquidity. Combined with a global reduction in stimulus, global markets have vacillated in reaction to all of these factors.