Share

Rand at multi-year lows amid strikes

Johannesburg - The rand struggled at five-year lows against the dollar on Friday as the second day of a strike across the country's platinum mining belt continued to unnerve investors.

The rand, which breached the 11.00 level on Thursday for the first time since October 2008, was at R11.1075/$ at 15:11 GMT, 1% weaker than Thursday's New York close.

Union leaders representing as many as 100 000 platinum miners who walked off the job on Thursday sat down with management from the world's top three producers - Anglo American Platinum (Amplats) [JSE:AMS], Impala Platinum [JSE:IMP] and Lonmin [JSE:LON] - in a bid to end the stoppage.

The government-brokered talks will resume next week.

An emerging markets selloff that hit currencies such as the Turkish lira, the Indian rupee and the Brazilian real on Friday also impacted the rand.

Expectations of reduced monetary stimulus by major central banks have driven investors to safe haven assets in the developed world.

"South African markets have been hit by...continued strength from the dollar and the new phase of capital outflows out of emerging markets, and locally based problems - worries about strike action," said Paul Chakaduka of Global Trader.

"A lot of investors are still worried about whether or not South Africa is a good place to invest."

Government bond yields continued to rise, climbing 7 basis points to 8.565% on the 2026 issue and 10.5 basis points to 6.47% on the 2015 paper.

We live in a world where facts and fiction get blurred
Who we choose to trust can have a profound impact on our lives. Join thousands of devoted South Africans who look to News24 to bring them news they can trust every day. As we celebrate 25 years, become a News24 subscriber as we strive to keep you informed, inspired and empowered.
Join News24 today
heading
description
username
Show Comments ()
Rand - Dollar
18.90
+0.2%
Rand - Pound
23.85
+0.2%
Rand - Euro
20.38
+0.3%
Rand - Aus dollar
12.31
+0.2%
Rand - Yen
0.12
+0.2%
Platinum
908.05
0.0%
Palladium
1,014.94
0.0%
Gold
2,232.75
-0.0%
Silver
24.95
-0.1%
Brent Crude
87.00
+1.8%
Top 40
68,346
0.0%
All Share
74,536
0.0%
Resource 10
57,251
0.0%
Industrial 25
103,936
0.0%
Financial 15
16,502
0.0%
All JSE data delayed by at least 15 minutes Iress logo
Company Snapshot
Editorial feedback and complaints

Contact the public editor with feedback for our journalists, complaints, queries or suggestions about articles on News24.

LEARN MORE
Government tenders

Find public sector tender opportunities in South Africa here.

Government tenders
This portal provides access to information on all tenders made by all public sector organisations in all spheres of government.
Browse tenders