Rand back above R19 to US dollar

The rand fell 1% on Friday, ending a turbulent month ahead of budget and trade figures later in the day.

At 12:45, the rand traded at R19.01 against the dollar.

The dollar traded at 103.440, about 0.1% stronger against a basket of global currencies.

“After kicking off the week on the front foot, the (rand) has come under notable selling pressure, with the market, by and large, taking direction from external developments,” said Kieran Siney of ETM Analytics.

The rand slipped in the second half of the week after comments by Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell on Wednesday alluded to further interest rate hikes to tackle inflation, giving the dollar a boost.

However, the rand has still appreciated by more than 4% against the dollar since the start of June, making it the second-best-performing emerging market currency this month, Siney said.

“The Rand did fairly well compared to its EM (emerging market) peers in the past two weeks and a period of consolidation was warranted,” said Andre Botha of TreasuryONE.

Earlier on Friday, central bank data showed South African private sector credit grew 6.85% year on year in May, while money supply increased 10.30% over the same period.

Monthly budget and trade balances for May are due to be released around 1200 GMT.

Analysts polled by Reuters predict a trade surplus of R6 billion in May, higher than April’s R3.54 billion surplus.

On the Johannesburg Stock Exchange, both the blue-chip Top 40 and the broader all-share indices were trading more than 1% higher.

South Africa’s benchmark 2030 government bond was weaker, with the yield up 7.5 basis points to 10.570%.