Shares of African Bank Investments rose 4.2 percent to 31 rand after its dividend beat market expectations.

"We are seeing resources rebounding. Some of these shares had quite a bit of a sell-off last week and got over-sold," said Ferdi Heyneke, a portfolio manager at Afrifocus Securities.

The benchmark Top-40 index closed up 1.25 percent at 33,020.13.

The broader All-share index finished up 1.12 percent at 37,229.64.

Implats rose 5.8 percent to 151 rand after brokerage Nomura raised it to "buy" from "reduce", while Amplats jumped 3.8 percent to 383.99 rand after Nomura lifted its rating to "neutral" from "reduce".

"With the reduced cumulative surplus, and with a restored investment narrative in the face of uncertain future supply from South Africa, the market is likely to become demand driven in early 2013 as metal availability dips," Nomura said in a research note to clients.

Johannesburg-listed shares of Lonmin gained 6.28 percent to 70.73 rand after Nomura gave it a "buy" rating from "reduce". Lonmin shareholders also voted in favour of an $817 million rights issue to repair its strike-battered balance sheet and fund its recovery.

The South African mining sector had been hit by strikes which saw some of the worst violence in South African since the end of apartheid and left more than 50 people dead.

There were 176 companies that gained in the session and another 108 fell with 74 unchanged, as over 152 million shares changed hands.

Losers included Netcare Ltd, South Africa's third-largest private hospital group by value. Shares in the company fell 1.5 percent to 17.98 rand after it posted a surprise 18 percent drop in full-year profit.