The South African bond market was weaker on Monday morning in line with a softer rand and as attention turned to the budget speech on Wednesday. The yield on the benchmark R186 bond was at 8.74% in early trade, from 8.68% on Friday, as the rand slipped to session lows of R13.1340 from highs R12.90 last week. The mild rand weakness coincided with the confirmation that former Eskom boss Brian Molefe was headed to Parliament as an MP. Molefe’s appointment is linked to speculation that he might be headed for a treasury post, replacing either Pravin Gordhan as finance minister or his deputy Mcebisi Jonas. "Headlines around Brian Molefe’s imminent appointment as an MP caused some panic in the market," Rand Merchant Bank (RMB) analyst Gordon Kerr said in a note "What was surprising was that both bonds and the rand didn’t sell off aggressively as soon as the news hit. There was almost a lull as investors assessed what the likely impact will be." At 8.44am the R186 was bid at 8.7400% from 8....
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