Having followed Asian and US markets weaker, local stocks extended losses by noon on Tuesday amid a firmer dollar which put commodities prices under some pressure, a local trader said.

At 11.54am the JSE all share index had lost 1.55 percent, with resources losing 2.64 percent, platinum counters shedding 2.43 percent and gold miners falling 4.10 percent.

Banks were off 0.61 percent, financials slipped 0.83 percent and industrials weakened 0.71 percent.

The rand was bid at 7.57 to the dollar from 7.53 just before the JSE closed on Monday. Gold was quoted at $1039.50 a troy ounce from $1054.42/oz just before the JSE's last close, and platinum was at $1330.50/oz, from $1328/oz at its previous close.

"We followed suit from the US. After our market closed, the US gave back gains to end sharply lower. That filtered through into the eastern markets under pressure this morning," the trader said.

"The strong rebound in the dollar is putting the commodity prices under pressure. The rest of the day depends on how the US opens. At this stage US futures are flat and it looks like the Dow will open flat, we will take a lead from there," he said.

Said another trader: "We might see the Dow open up and have a bit of a bounce after two days of losses. But I still see us ending negative."

Dow Jones Newswire reports that the FTSE 100 traded up, coming off lows having dipped into negative territory. FTSE is trying to recover some of its losses after Monday's sharp fall but the banking sector is looking noticeably weaker. Manoj Ladwa at ETX Capital said talk was circulating of stocks of companies with high debt being sold, while ING's disposals serve as a reminder about the structural difficulties facing many companies in the banking sector.

The FTSE 100 had last collected 0.40 percent.

US stocks are tipped to open a little higher on Tuesday, as traders look to buy back following Monday's losses. GFT's strategist David Morrison called DJIA up 12 points and the S&P 500 up 1 point. With little in the way of corporate earnings, traders will focus on the dollar again, he said.

"There is a lot of renewed concern over the banking sector, as regional banking failures rose above 100 for the year," said Morrison.