Firm rand steady amid strong euro

Johannesburg - The rand remained steady in afternoon trade on Thursday hovering around the R7.30 level against the dollar, tracking a strong euro.

At 15:42 local time the rand was bid at R7.2746 to the dollar from R7.3427 at Wednesday's close. It was bid at R9.5396 to the euro from R9.5367 before and at R11.3923 against the sterling from R11.4306 at its previous close.

The euro was bid at $1.3093 from $1.2993 overnight.

A local dealer said: "The euro has had a good day, with the rand steady at the R7.30 level against the dollar. If we break through that level, we might test R7.34, otherwise expect R7.25 tomorrow," he said.

Dow Jones Newswires reports that the euro rose against the dollar on Thursday to its highest level since early May after improving eurozone economic data contrasted with festering worries that the US economy is slowing.

The dollar traded at its lowest point since April against a trade-weighted basket of its competitors as investors worried the pace of US growth would not keep up with its major competitors.

A better-than-expected reading of US weekly jobless claims failed to extinguish the worry, as the previous week's claims were revised upward, signalling little improvement in the labour sector and keeping the dollar under pressure.

The euro continues to benefit from easing concerns over the region's sovereign-debt crisis. The worst of that crisis has likely passed, and there are signs of confidence returning, though some countries will still face deficit-related problems, a senior sovereign analyst for Moody's Investors Service said on Thursday.

On Thursday, the Labour Department announced initial claims for jobless benefits declined by 11 000 to 457 000 in the week ended July 24.

  - I-Net Bridge