Rand firms against dollar, stocks slide

South Africa’s rand firmed against the dollar on Thursday, as US weekly jobless claims data pointed to a cooling off in the labour market, easing worries about harsher Federal Reserve rate hikes next year.

Read: Wall Street set to open higher as jobless claims data calm rate hike worries

At 1559 GMT, the risk-sensitive rand traded at 16.8875 against the dollar, 1.2% stronger than its previous close.

The dollar index, which measures the greenback against six rivals, was down 0.364% at 103.97.

On the stock market, the Top-40  and the broader all-share indexes ended almost 1% lower.

South African government’s benchmark 2030 bond prices weakened in afternoon deals, with the yield up 1.5 basis points to 10.255%.