Rand steady in early trade against dollar

The rand steadied in early trade on Monday as investors prepare for a sharp US interest rate rise this week amid signs of a weakening global economy.

At 0708 GMT, the rand ZAR=D3 traded at 16.84 against the dollar, little changed from its previous close of 16.83.

The rand has held at the 16.80 level after breaking below the 17.00 mark last week, losing some steam, Andre Cilliers, currency strategist at TreasuryONE, said in a research note.

“The fact that the level has been holding up so far could suggest that the rand momentum has run out a little bit, and the closer we get to the Fed decision on Wednesday, we expect some volatility,” he said.

The US Federal Reserve concludes a two-day meeting on Wednesday and markets are priced for a 75-basis-point rate increase, with about a 9% chance of a 100 bp rise.

On the stock market, the Top-40 and the broader all-share indexes both dipped more than 0.8% in early trade.

The government’s benchmark 2030 bond rose in early deals, with the yield down 3 basis points to 10.510%.