Rand trades slightly weaker after gaining ground after S&P decision
The rand was stronger against the dollar at midday on Monday, continuing to benefit from the reprieve S&P Global Ratings gave the country on Friday night. The agency decided to maintain its rating of SA’s foreign currency debt at one level above noninvestment grade, or junk status, but lowered the local currency rating one notch. Fitch Ratings and S&P had the country on negative outlook, which indicates that SA not out of the woods yet, according to some analysts. Andre Botha, a currency dealer at TreasuryOne, said the general feeling was that the can had been kicked down the road only until June 2017, when S&P is expected to downgrade SA’s foreign-currency rating to junk. The rand was steady against the euro after Italians voted against a constitutional reform proposal on Sunday. The Italian referendum was set to dominate global focus on Monday, according to Botha, so any news out of Italy would have an effect on the Euro. The euro seems to have recovered against the dollar for the...
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.