The South African (SA) Rand was steady in early trade on Wednesday as traders cautiously assessed geopolitical developments after Iran accused the United States (US) of violating a fragile ceasefire by launching attacks near the Strait of Hormuz.
The Rand traded at 16.3650 against the Dollar, little changed from its previous close of 16.3750.
The greenback last traded flat against a basket of currencies.
“We are stuck in a narrow range until we get some more interesting data from the US tomorrow and our own SA Reserve Bank makes a decision on rates. Even then, I don’t see much of a move. As usual, everything centres on the Gulf,” Adam Phillips, Treasury Specialist at Umkhulu Treasury, wrote in a note.
On Thursday, domestic investor attention will mainly be pinned on the SA Reserve Bank’s interest rate decision, when economists polled by Reuters expect the bank to hike the rate by 25 basis points to 7% from 6.75%.
SA’s benchmark 2035 government bond was also flat in early deals, with the yield at 8.54%.
–Reuters–
