South African Stock Index Heads for Worst Month Since 2008

Johannesburg’s benchmark stock index is heading for its worst month in almost two decades, reeling from a double hit as the Iran war saps demand for emerging-market assets while plunging precious-metal prices weigh on the country’s miners.

The FTSE/JSE All Share Index was down 14% in March by 9:30 a.m. in Johannesburg, on track for its biggest monthly decline since the height of the global financial crisis in September 2008, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. That’s a sharp turnaround after the gauge logged 12 straight monthly gains through February, the longest streak on record.