Where big money has been made on the JSE post-GNU

The JSE All Share Index has been up 13% over the past six months since early May - where the prevailing mood in the country was of uncertainty given the national and provincial elections at the end of that month.

A government of national unity (GNU) wasn't seen as a likely or even possible scenario by most experts.

Performance on the market hasn't been even, with resources practically flat over that period.

Sentiment has improved dramatically since the formation of the GNU, and this has helped propel many of the SA Inc-type stocks to their highest levels in years.

Traditional rand hedges have battled as the currency continues to strengthen (5% better against the dollar over six months). This has been a stock-pickers market.

The stars Among the Top 40, eight shares delivered returns in excess of 30% over the six months, with insurers Discovery (55%) and OUTsurance (52%) leading the pack.

Sanlam is up 30%. Three of the big banks, Capitec Bank (43%), Standard Bank (39%) and Nedbank (33%), are also standout performers, along with Mr Price (45%) and Impala Platinum (39%).

Discovery's performance has been astonishing, with it currently trading at 52-week highs (over R180) versus lows of under R110 in May and early June.