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Johannesburg - The rand traded within easy reach of the previous day's three-week lows against the dollar on Friday, partly weighed down by concerns over the economic impact of a renewed power crunch.
The currency retreated slightly after South African Reserve Bank (Sarb) data showed the country's net gold and foreign exchange reserves fell to $42.946bn in November from $43.085bn in October.
READ: SA's net reserves lower in November
At 08:59, the rand was at R11.2175 against the dollar, down 0.17% from Thursday's close at R11.1980 in New York.
In fixed income, the yield for the government bond maturing in 2026, the benchmark for the secondary market, was down 1.5 basis points at 7.71%.
The rand has fallen more than 7% against the dollar this year as protracted strikes in the mining and manufacturing sectors and, more recently, power blackouts as utility Eskom struggles to cope with demand, take their toll on the economy.
READ: Eskom warns of renewed power cuts
"Fears over the economy’s weak fundamentals and how it will cope with rising US interest rates will keep the local unit under pressure going into 2015," research house NKC said in a note.
Nagging shortfalls on the budget and current account have also raised fears of another possible credit rating downgrade next week when Fitch and Standard and Poor's release their latest reviews.
The currency retreated slightly after South African Reserve Bank (Sarb) data showed the country's net gold and foreign exchange reserves fell to $42.946bn in November from $43.085bn in October.
READ: SA's net reserves lower in November
At 08:59, the rand was at R11.2175 against the dollar, down 0.17% from Thursday's close at R11.1980 in New York.
In fixed income, the yield for the government bond maturing in 2026, the benchmark for the secondary market, was down 1.5 basis points at 7.71%.
The rand has fallen more than 7% against the dollar this year as protracted strikes in the mining and manufacturing sectors and, more recently, power blackouts as utility Eskom struggles to cope with demand, take their toll on the economy.
READ: Eskom warns of renewed power cuts
"Fears over the economy’s weak fundamentals and how it will cope with rising US interest rates will keep the local unit under pressure going into 2015," research house NKC said in a note.
Nagging shortfalls on the budget and current account have also raised fears of another possible credit rating downgrade next week when Fitch and Standard and Poor's release their latest reviews.
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