The US labour market showed signs of recovery in August, with job growth strengthening after a subdued performance in the prior month. In China, economic momentum continued to weaken, with an increasingly uneven recovery marked by resilient external demand but sluggish domestic activity. Eurozone inflation picked up in August 2026, although underlying inflationary pressures appeared to moderate despite the higher headline reading. In the UK, the services sector delivered an unexpected improvement during the month. Japan’s foreign exchange reserves recorded their steepest decline since official records began in 2000. Locally, South Africa’s annual consumer inflation rate eased in July, offering some relief from cost pressures facing consumers.

Global equity market returns moved further into double-digit territory, with the MSCI World Index ending August at 13.4% year-to-date (YTD), while recording a single-digit monthly gain of 2.58% month-on-month (m/m), in US dollars. Market leadership rotated from the momentum-driven trading environment that has dominated performance over the past few months towards a more fundamentally driven market. August started with positive rhetoric from US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Qatari officials about the possibility of an imminent agreement to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, which drove the price of Brent crude below US$80/bbl. The MSCI EM Index ended the month in positive territory, rising 3.40% m/m from July’s 3.03% m/m gain, and 24.35% YTD, in US dollars. The FTSE 100 ended August in positive territory at 0.69% m/m, although this was lower than July’s 3.69% m/m gain in pound sterling. The S&P 500 gained 2.72% m/m in August, following July’s gain of 0.06% m/m, in US dollars. Global bonds gained 0.40% m/m in August after declining 0.21% m/m in July, in US dollars. After outperforming with a 2.67% m/m gain in July, global property ended August in negative territory, down 3.06% m/m, in US dollars. The Euro Stoxx 50 Index’s gains continued into August, rising 1.04% m/m from July’s 0.58% m/m gain, in euros. The Dow Jones Index ended August positively at 1.47% m/m, following July’s 0.38% m/m gain, in US dollars. The Nikkei Index’s July gains continued into August, ending the month up 3.08% m/m in yen terms.

The JSE was the best-performing major equity market in August, with the FTSE/JSE All Share Index ending the month up 4.65% m/m in rand terms. This marked a second consecutive positive month, bringing the index back into positive territory YTD. As was the case for most of 2025 and the beginning of 2026, returns on the local bourse were largely driven by precious metals miners, with Resources gaining 24.46% m/m and 11.61% YTD, while the rest of the market struggled. Local property ended the month in negative territory, declining 3.81% m/m in rand terms, while Financials also underperformed, falling 1.22% m/m compared with the previous month’s 2.30% m/m gain. The Industrials sector was also in negative territory in August, declining 4.92% after recording a positive return of 4.27% m/m in July. Cash continued its positive returns from July into August, rising 0.58% m/m in rand terms and 3.20% m/m in US dollars. The FTSE/JSE All Bond Index ended the month positively, gaining 0.69% m/m in rand terms and 3.31% m/m in US dollars. Local bonds gained across the short, medium and long end of the curve, with bonds of 1–3 years gaining 0.74% m/m, bonds of 3–7 years gaining 0.55% m/m, bonds of 7–12 years gaining 0.84% m/m, and bonds of 12 years and above gaining 0.68% m/m. The rand strengthened 2.60% m/m against the US dollar, 1.63% m/m against the euro and 1.84% m/m against the pound sterling.