Rand is likely to remain on its pedestal for now, some analysts suggest
Is the party over for the rand? The rand reached a three-year high after Cyril Ramaphosa was sworn in as head of state on February 15, fuelling optimism among investors that management of the economy would improve. Benchmark bond yields fell to levels last seen in 2013, while stocks had their best week in more than eight years. With the rand paring some of its advance this week, traders are divided about whether there is scope for further gains. Citigroup thinks the market has run ahead of itself, and took profit on its rand and interest-rate bets this week. JPMorgan Chase agrees, but is staying put in the absence of any near-term triggers to spark a correction. Societe Generale, on the other hand, increased its overweight exposure to South African sovereign debt, while Standard Chartered was betting on further rand strength. "There has been a fantastic run in rand assets," Luis Costa, a strategist at Citigroup Global Markets, wrote in a note on Monday. "The so-called Ramaphosa rall...
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