THE rand lost further ground against major currencies in late trade, as it re-tested the R9/US dollar level before pulling back.
At 3.54pm‚ the rand was bid at R8.9366 to the US dollar from Tuesday’s close of R8.8451. The local currency was bid at R11.4643 to the euro from its previous close of R11.3292 and at R14.2598 against sterling from R14.0770 before. The euro was bid at $1.2817, from Monday’s close of $1.2812.
"It is difficult see specifically why the rand bounced off the R9 level to the greenback other than foreigners rationalising their long rand positions ahead of the public holiday in the US," said Mohammed Nalla, analyst at Nedbank Capital. "Having said, we still think the key support level for the rand still stands at R9/US dollar."
Fears over the global economic growth stoked by the US fiscal cliff‚ Europe’s struggles with its sovereign debt crisis and domestic political and economic issues continue to weigh on the local currency.
