South Africans bonds were firmer in midday trade on Friday taking their cue from a stronger rand. Trade was lacklustre, however, ahead of the long weekend. With Thursday also having been a public holiday, many traders had taken Friday off to enjoy a five-day break. Local trade data for March were due to be released on Friday afternoon, but unless there was a major surprise, the local markets were unlikely to be moved by the information. The local fixed-income market has steadily recovered from the fall-out after the controversial Cabinet reshuffle in late March and the country’s subsequent credit-rating downgrade to subinvestment grade, or junk status, by S&P Global Ratings and Fitch. The yield on the benchmark R186 bond rose as high as 9.2% in the days following the Cabinet changes, in which finance minister Pravin Gordhan was fired, leading to a sharp weakening of the rand. At 12.02pm on Friday, the yield on the benchmark R186 bond was at 8.68% from 8.72% on Wednesday, when the ma...
Would you like to comment on this article?
Sign up (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.
Subscribe now to unlock this article.
Support BusinessLIVE’s award-winning journalism for R129 per month (digital access only).
There’s never been a more important time to support independent journalism in SA. Our subscription packages now offer an ad-free experience for readers.
Cancel anytime.
Questions? Email helpdesk@businesslive.co.za or call 0860 52 52 00. Got a subscription voucher? Redeem it now.