Johannesburg- Shares of South African gold stocks extend recent sharp losses as the precious metal's spot price falls to its lowest in nearly three years, taking the Johannesburg bourse's gold mining index to 12-year lows.
The declines were across the board.
Shares in AngloGold Ashanti, Africa's top bullion producer, are down 6.3 percent at 131.91 rand, the biggest decliner on the benchmark Top-40 index.
Tiny rival Gold One is 14 percent lower at 110 cents, the biggest drop on the broader All-Share index .
Johannesburg's gold mining index is down over 5 percent to 1,166.77, its lowest level since October 2001.
Gold fell to its lowest in nearly three years on Wednesday, pressured by strong US economic data that boosted stock markets and supported the US Federal Reserve's plan to scale back monetary easing in the next few months. - Reuters