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Rand, under severe pressure, approaches R20/$

Published: 2023-10-05 09:57 +02:00 by Agency Staff tag: Investment

JSE:JSE

The rand weakened in early trade on Thursday, nearing the R19.50/$ mark – close to a record low.
The rand weakened in early trade on Thursday, giving up some earlier gains after US treasury yields slipped from 16-year highs.

At 9.28am, the rand traded at R19.42/US$, about 0.4% weaker than its previous close. The dollar last traded around 0.04% stronger against a basket of global currencies.

On Thursday, a plunge in oil prices and softer US labour data helped pull treasury yields off 16-year peaks, weakening the dollar and giving some reprieve to emerging market currencies such as the rand in earlier trade.

The rand has already lost about 2.2% against the greenback this month. It’s still not at its worst-ever level against the dollar, although it is close — the record low was set in May, when it sagged to R19.85 to the greenback.

Rand cues

Like other risk-sensitive currencies, the rand often takes cues from international factors like changes in US yields, in the absence of major local data points.

On the JSE, the blue-chip Top40 index last traded about 0.1% higher. — Tannur Anders, (c) 2023 Reuters

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