Rand holds steady below R16 mark as international markets extend gains
The South African rand has dropped below R16 to the US dollar once again this week.
Image: AI / ChatGPT
The South African rand continued to trade below the R16 mark early on Tuesday as global markets extended their gains following Monday’s rally that was largely spurred by political developments in Japan.
The local currency was trading at R16.90 to the US dollar on Tuesday morning, R18.94 to the Euro and R21.77 to the British Pound. Although still trailing its four-year highs of around R15.71 in late January, the rand has slipped back comfortably below the R16 psychological barrier after last week’s turbulence that saw it peak at R16.24.
Bianca Botes, Director at Citadel Global, said the rand remains sentiment-driven, as investors look ahead to key US economic data, due out later this week, for guidance on the Fed’s next move.
The rand is currently enjoying some renewed commodity price benefits, ETM analytics said, as gold and platinum prices staged recoveries this week. Gold is once again trading above the $5,000 per ounce mark, while the US dollar is tracking 0.7% weaker ahead of this week’s crucial data.
On the market front, Asian shares extended their gains on Tuesday, following a Wall Street rally on Monday, AFP reported. Tokyo’s Nikkei gained over two percent to post another record following Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s election triumph.
According to AFP, gains across global markets have steadied trading after last week’s broad-based volatility, with technology stocks recovering from losses sparked by concerns over AI-related spending.
Big gains were also recorded in Hong Kong, Seoul, Taipei, Shanghai, Sydney and Manila. The Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE) saw a modest gain of 0.19% on Monday, following a mixed performance last week, which ended with a 1.27% gain on Friday.
Investors are currently gearing up for the release of key US data later this week, which is likely to provide a fresh insight into its economy and the Federal Reserve’s mood on interest rates.
Key Figures at 4:30am - South African time
- Key figures at around 0230 GMT -
- Tokyo - Nikkei 225: 2.8 percent at 57,926.07 (break)
- Hong Kong - Hang Seng Index: UP 1.3 percent at 27,367.12
- Shanghai - Composite: UP 0.2 percent at 4,131.80
- Dollar/yen: DOWN at 155.70 yen from 155.90 yen on Monday
- Euro/dollar: DOWN at $1.1909 from $1.1918
- Pound/dollar: DOWN at $1.3687 from $1.3695
- Euro/pound: UP at 87.00 pence from 86.99 pence
- West Texas Intermediate: DOWN 0.2 percent at $64.23 per barrel
- Brent North Sea Crude: DOWN 0.1 percent at $68.94 per barrel
- New York - Dow: FLAT at 50,135.87 (close)
- London - FTSE 100: UP 0.2 percent at 10,386.23 (close)
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