South African stocks closed lower on Friday, as gold producers such as Gold Fields took a hit from weak bullion prices and investors cashed in recent gainer such as Naspers and British American Tobacco. Johannesburg's index of gold companies slid more than 3 percent as the precious metal slipped to a two-week low after US economic data stoked fears the Federal Reserve could start to taper its commodities-supportive stimulus measures.
Investors booked profit on some of the best performing stocks this week a day after the benchmark Top-40 index edged near a record close a day earlier. "It has been a real lacklustre trading session," said Henre Herselman, a derivatives trader at Nedbank Private Wealth. The benchmark Top-40 index fell 0.68 percent to 37,218.32, while the broader All-Share index dropped 0.5 percent to 41,700.19.
Gold Fields, South Africa's second largest bullion producer by production, was the biggest decliner on the bluechip index. It plunged 5.2 percent to 57.84 rand. Smaller rival Harmony Gold shed 3.95 percent to 36.10 rand. AngloGold Ashanti, Africa's biggest bullion producer, fell 1.7 percent to 126.47 rand. Spot gold was down 1.6 percent to $1,287.56 an ounce early in the session, after falling through a key technical level of $1,300. But the precious metal had rebounded by the close of trading as the dollar dropped.
South African media and Internet firm Naspers fell 3.2 percent to 828.10 rand, the second biggest decliner on the Top-40, while Investec Plc closed 1.8 percent lower to 67.81 rand. British American Tobacco dipped 0.96 percent to 534.87 rand. More than 144 million shares changed hands, according to preliminary bourse data. Advancers outpaced decliners at 150 to 131, with 59 stocks unchanged.