Monday, 30 March 2015 21:30
JOHANNESBURG: South Africa’s rand extended losses against the dollar on Monday, hitting a new one-week low, as a basket of currencies suffered at the hand of a stronger greenback.
At 1437 GMT the rand was trading 0.74 percent weaker at 12.1240 to the dollar compared with its closing level on Friday.
“It’s a general risk-off feel to the market and also the dollar strengthened on the day,” Rand Merchant Bank trader Jim Bryson said.
The dollar index, which measures the greenback against a basket of six major currencies, was up 0.54 percent at 97.817 .
The rand flirted with three-week highs in the previous week before capitulating to a firming dollar, as inflation pressures increased with local petrol prices set to rise 14 percent on Wednesday.
Government bonds also weakened, and the yield for the 2026 benchmark was up 8 basis points to 7.910 percent.
Copyright Reuters, 2015
