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Johannesburg - The rand held steady against the dollar early on Thursday, trading near a two-week high as the greenback suffered a setback after weak economic data.
The rand was at 10.5805/dollar at 06:48 GMT, slightly weaker but not far off its close in New York on Wednesday.
It hit its strongest level in over two weeks at R10.5650 to the dollar earlier in the session and looked set for five days of consecutive gains as it inches towards R10.5000.
Dealers said the local currency was getting support from a decline in the prices of traditional safe-havens as Russia/Ukraine geopolitical tensions looked to ease, stoking the appetite for riskier emerging market assets.
Locally investors will be watching mining numbers for June.
Economists polled by Reuters expect a slight deterioration in the June numbers, with the sector still struggling to recover from months of inactivity in the platinum belt.
The data is due at 0930 GMT, after which focus will turn to US jobless claims at 12:30 GMT.
Yields on government bonds nudged down half a basis point each to 6.66% on the 2015 note and to 8.305% on the 2026 issue.
The rand was at 10.5805/dollar at 06:48 GMT, slightly weaker but not far off its close in New York on Wednesday.
It hit its strongest level in over two weeks at R10.5650 to the dollar earlier in the session and looked set for five days of consecutive gains as it inches towards R10.5000.
Dealers said the local currency was getting support from a decline in the prices of traditional safe-havens as Russia/Ukraine geopolitical tensions looked to ease, stoking the appetite for riskier emerging market assets.
Locally investors will be watching mining numbers for June.
Economists polled by Reuters expect a slight deterioration in the June numbers, with the sector still struggling to recover from months of inactivity in the platinum belt.
The data is due at 0930 GMT, after which focus will turn to US jobless claims at 12:30 GMT.
Yields on government bonds nudged down half a basis point each to 6.66% on the 2015 note and to 8.305% on the 2026 issue.
