SA’s gross reserves rose $601m to $47.8bn in October, from $47.2bn in September, according to data from the South African Reserve Bank. The increase in gross reserves reflected the proceeds from the foreign debt issuance by the Treasury and the maturing foreign exchange swaps conducted for liquidity management purposes. Foreign exchange reserves are an important indicator of a country’s ability to repay foreign debt in the short term and are used for currency defence. Reserves are also taken into account when determining a country’s credit rating. SA’s rating is due to come up for review in December. The international liquidity position (ILP) dropped $154m to $41.799bn in October from $41.953bn in September The decrease in the international liquidity position reflected the increase in the foreign currency deposits received, the central bank data showed.

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