The influential industrial gauge picked up 0.94%‚ leaving the R15-trillion all share index up just 0.08% to 52‚816.40 points at lunchtime‚ thanks to a weaker rand.
The local currency dipped a two-week intraday low of R13.64/$‚ pressuring sectors that are sensitive to changes in interest rates‚ such as banks.
The big losses were in the resources complex‚ with gold miners dropping 4% as a result of weaker commodity prices that were hurt by a strong dollar. The price of Brent crude was off almost 3% to $49 a barrel‚ with silver dropping 1.61% to $18.96/oz.
Another top US Federal Reserve official beat the drum at the weekend of a possible rise in US interest rates in 2016‚ sending the greenback much stronger against its major trading partners.
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"For the moment‚ the rhetoric mostly represents an attempt to manhandle the market as economic data has been insufficient to cement a strong likelihood of a rate hike‚" Momentum SP Reid Securities analysts said.
Europe’s leading markets were mixed at midday but US stock futures suggested a weaker opening on Wall Street.
British American Tobacco lead the rally in the industrial sector‚ picking up 2.82% to R877.76‚ with SABMiller climbing 1.98% to R781.24.
Luxury goods maker Richemont and internet and media group Naspers gained 1.71% to R2‚316.65.
Among the diversified miners‚ Anglo American was off 3.22% to R147.98 and Glencore retreated 2.79% to R32.43.
AngloGold Ashanti was 4.77% lower at R248.55 and Harmony lost 4.44% to R52.75.
- TMG Digital/BDlive
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