Africa-Press – South-Africa. JOHANNESBURG – The rand weakened yesterday, backtracking for the first time this week, as data pointing to an improvement in the US economic outlook lifted the dollar.
At 5pm, the rand was 0.95 percent weaker at R15.08 against the dollar.
In previous sessions, the rand was supported by the global search for yield by investors unsure of the direction of lending rates in developed economies. The currency gained more than 1.5 percent in the first three days of the week.
But yesterday, a stronger greenback weighed on the rand.
With no local data due the rest of the week and US non-farm payrolls set for release today, traders expect the rand to trade in a narrow range.
“The USD-ZAR has traded with a topside tilt overnight, with momentum having shifted after the pair was unable to sustain a break below the (R)14.9000 support level yesterday,” economists at ETM Analytics said in a note. “The pair looks comfortable pivoting around (R)15.0000 for now, and may need a strong catalyst to break out of this pattern.”
The equity market firmed, led by consumer facing stocks and banking and financial shares as investors looked to eased lockdown restrictions to help the retail, restaurant and hospitality sectors.
Hotel and casino owner Sun International led the gainers, up 11.9 percent to R15.33 and general retailers climbed 3.89 percent to 5255.57 points, while the financial 15 index rose 2.99 percent to 2205.26 points..
Energy and chemicals company Sasol jumped 4.64 percent to R196.73, while mobile network operator MTN Group, which has operations in Nigeria, was up 4.5 percent at R66.15, benefiting from higher oil prices.
The JSE all share index closed the session 1.23 percent firmer at 63 786.21 points, while the Top40 index gained 1.15 percent to 58 493.74 points.
In fixed income, the yield on the 2030 government issue fell 0.5 basis point to 8.45 percent.
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