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Johannesburg - The rand was steady in early trade on Friday, having barely moved overnight. The main focus for markets today is the US jobs data.
At 09:00 the rand was bid at R9.6139 to the dollar from an overnight close of R9.6341. It was bid at R13.1556 to the euro from a previous R13.2314 and at R14.6624 against sterling from R14.6968 before.
The euro was bid at $1.3669 from $1.3702 overnight.
A local currency trader said there had not been much movement in the currency markets overnight and all eyes are now on the US jobs data in the afternoon.
"We are still watching the crosses - they are still quite weak - and we are also still watching other emerging markets," he said.
"The US jobs data is the important one today - it's a big call," he added.
He expects the rand to move in a R9.56 to R9.75 to the dollar range for today.
Dow Jones Newswires reports the dollar regained some ground in Tokyo on Friday, after falling broadly the previous two days, as short-term speculators in Asia covered positions against the euro and yen.
Trading was thin as a "wait and watch" mood gripped the market ahead of US jobs data on Friday, which dealers said pose further risks for the unit.
The dollar's traction against the European common currency came as some players bet European Central Bank President Jean-Claude Trichet's comments overnight concerning "the possible threat of deflation" meant the ECB would deliver at least the expected 50 basis point interest rate cut next Thursday.
Dealers also said the dollar benefited from low liquidity, letting it register gains on relatively small speculator position adjustments. Some resistance came from Japanese insurance firms and speculators squaring positions, according to a senior dealer at a major Japanese bank.
While the dollar could suffer from another bout of selling on poor payroll data on Friday, a smaller number of job losses is likely to turn into the dollar's favour, some currency strategists noted.
"Sentiment is strongly skewed in one direction which can be dangerous considering the fact that some of the leading indicators for non-farm payrolls call for a rebound," said Kathy Lien, director of currency research at Global Forex Trading in New York. Lien added that the whisper number for the payroll is closer to 650 000 to 700 000 losses.
- I-Net Bridge