VW fighting for survival, and top company opening new gold mine in South Africa

The rand was trading at R16.19 to the US dollar on the morning of Wednesday, 2 September 2026, closing the previous day weaker than it opened.

The local market faced downward pressure, with the JSE All Share Index declining by 0.35% and the Top 40 Index by 0.37%.

Market sentiment was affected by the ABSA Manufacturing PMI, which fell to 45.8 in August, down from 46.8 the month prior.

This is the index’s lowest reading in 2026 and its fourth consecutive month in contractionary territory below the 50-point expansion threshold.

In the United States, Wall Street indices fell across the board, with the S&P 500 down 0.71%, the Dow Jones down 0.73%, and the Nasdaq down 1.03%.

The probability of a 25-basis-point Federal Reserve rate hike rose to 68.2%, up from just 39.2% a week prior.

In Europe, eurozone inflation rose to 3.3% in August from 2.9% in July, strengthening expectations for a European Central Bank rate hike.

South Korea’s inflation rose to 3.1% as Asian indices fell, with the Hang Seng down 0.93% and the Nikkei 225 down 0.15%.

In commodities, Brent crude oil surged past $95 per barrel amid fresh US-Iran strikes, while gold dropped to a three-week low of $4,302.68.

The Iranian Revolutionary Guard warned that traffic through the Strait of Hormuz may be restricted as US crude oil reserves declined by 2.6 million barrels.

On Wednesday morning, the rand was trading at R16.19 against the US dollar, R18.73 against the euro, and R21.84 against the British pound.

Important finance and investing news

VW fighting for survival: Volkswagen CEO Oliver Blume is looking to downscale the German automobile manufacturer and restructure it to have a more global footprint, as the company continues to face stiff competition from Chinese car makers. [Wall Street Journal]

Major South African mine doubles up: Sibanye-Stillwater reported higher first-half earnings for the six months ending June 2026 on the back of higher gold and platinum metal prices, with its adjusted EBITDA more than doubling to R31.8 billion. The company’s board approved new gold mines in Gauteng and Australia. [BusinessDay]

Dell stocks surge: Dell Technologies saw its share price rise by more than 10% in after-hours trading on Tuesday as the company raised its guidance and adjusted earnings for its 2027 fiscal year. This comes as Dell reported a record $60.9 billion in AI server orders. [Yahoo Finance]

Rate hike on the cards for Japan: The Bank of Japan has said it is considering raising interest rates in September, with governor Kazuo Ueda signalling a strong chance of a hike amidst the potential of heightening inflationary risks. [Reuters]

Durban’s missing R47 billion: The eThekwini Metropolitan Municipality has accumulated a debt bill of over R47 billion, with the biggest debtors to the municipality being households owing R35 billion, followed by businesses at R10 billion and government departments at R2 billion. [EWN]