The rand was weaker on Monday morning, at the start of a crucial week that will feature the medium-term budget policy statement.Finance Minister Malusi Gigaba will have his work cut out for him as he tries to balance the country’s finances.Economists expect the budget deficit to rise, given the economy’s sluggish performance and its effect on tax collections.Gigaba "is in a very tight corner", said Ashley Dickinson, head of fixed income dealing at Sasfin Wealth. "As we already know, he is dealing with a funding shortfall of at least R40bn with little room to manoeuvre."We don’t anticipate much good news and the substance will be around how he can package taxation and reduction in government expenditure in the ensuing fiscal year."The medium-term budget announcement comes at a time of renewed pressure on the rand, as a result of international and local factors.The dollar has been bolstered in part by optimism over tax cuts in the US.Local politics were again the under the spotlight a...
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