JOHANNESBURG — The South African rand slipped against the United States dollar yesterday despite the unresolved budget impasse in the US that has kept the greenback on the ropes.
The rand was at R10,0100/$ at 8:37am, down 0,2% from its close in New York on Wednesday.
The dollar fell to eight-month lows yesterday as US President Barack Obama and congressional leaders failed to reach an agreement to end the government shutdown.
The stalemate has sparked fears of a similar deadlock over raising the debt ceiling later this month, which could lead to an unprecedented default by the world’s biggest economy.
Although the rand advanced on Wednesday as investors bet that the US shutdown would lead to a delay in the tapering of monetary stimulus, it has failed to consolidate those gains.
“The rand gained more than most of its emerging market peers yesterday, but its performance remains lacking considering how far the dollar index has fallen,” Tradition Analytics wrote in a note.
Trading is also likely to be cautious ahead of US non-farm payrolls data today.
Government bond yields declined, falling 3,5 basis points on the 2026 paper to 8,04% and 5 basis points on the 2015 instrument to 6,135%.
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— Reuters
