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Johannesburg - The rand was hardly changed from its
morning mark in midday play on Thursday.
A local trader noted a slight bias towards a firmer rand however, amid positive sentiment on the eve of the FIFA World Cup and a slightly softer dollar.
At 11:59 the rand was bid at R7.7306 to the dollar from R7.7740 at its previous close. It was bid at R9.3252 to the euro from its previous close of R9.3274 and was at R11.2714 against sterling from R11.3074.
The euro was bid at $1.2069 from $1.1990 overnight.
A local trader said: "We are seeing the majors moving in a more sideways pattern of late.
"The rand is capped at R7.83 against the dollar, with a low of R7.71. We are seeing better offers for a stronger rand however, with the World Cup likely to boost sentiment further," he said.
The trader also noted a weaker dollar against the majors.
Dow Jones Newswires reports that optimism over the global economy helped the euro to rally but the single currency is becoming volatile on Thursday as investors turn wary ahead of the end of the European Central Bank's latest policy meeting.
The ECB is expected to leave rates unchanged but all eyes will be on what ECB President Jean-Claude Trichet has to say about the bank's bond buying programme as well as about the single currency's recent slide down to around $1.20.
"Only investors with strong nerves will have open positions over the ECB press conference," said Flemming Nielsen, senior analyst with Danske Bank.
Nevertheless, the euro still managed to make gains after strong economic data from Australia, China and Japan all helped to boost market sentiment.
News that Spain had held a successful three-year bond auction also boosted sentiment.
Confirmation of leaked data from China that its exports grew by nearly 50% in the year to May; a surprise upward revision to Japan's first quarter growth; a sharp fall in Australian unemployment; and the start of a rate hiking cycle in New Zealand all contributed to the feeling that the global economy is pulling out of recession.
Equities in Asia rallied and the euro got an additional boost when the head of China's National Social Security Fund, Dai Xianglong, said that he expects the single currency to survive the debt crisis.
This suggests that the euro may well retain some resilience even if sovereign debt concerns in the eurozone continue to rise.
- I-Net Bridge
A local trader noted a slight bias towards a firmer rand however, amid positive sentiment on the eve of the FIFA World Cup and a slightly softer dollar.
At 11:59 the rand was bid at R7.7306 to the dollar from R7.7740 at its previous close. It was bid at R9.3252 to the euro from its previous close of R9.3274 and was at R11.2714 against sterling from R11.3074.
The euro was bid at $1.2069 from $1.1990 overnight.
A local trader said: "We are seeing the majors moving in a more sideways pattern of late.
"The rand is capped at R7.83 against the dollar, with a low of R7.71. We are seeing better offers for a stronger rand however, with the World Cup likely to boost sentiment further," he said.
The trader also noted a weaker dollar against the majors.
Dow Jones Newswires reports that optimism over the global economy helped the euro to rally but the single currency is becoming volatile on Thursday as investors turn wary ahead of the end of the European Central Bank's latest policy meeting.
The ECB is expected to leave rates unchanged but all eyes will be on what ECB President Jean-Claude Trichet has to say about the bank's bond buying programme as well as about the single currency's recent slide down to around $1.20.
"Only investors with strong nerves will have open positions over the ECB press conference," said Flemming Nielsen, senior analyst with Danske Bank.
Nevertheless, the euro still managed to make gains after strong economic data from Australia, China and Japan all helped to boost market sentiment.
News that Spain had held a successful three-year bond auction also boosted sentiment.
Confirmation of leaked data from China that its exports grew by nearly 50% in the year to May; a surprise upward revision to Japan's first quarter growth; a sharp fall in Australian unemployment; and the start of a rate hiking cycle in New Zealand all contributed to the feeling that the global economy is pulling out of recession.
Equities in Asia rallied and the euro got an additional boost when the head of China's National Social Security Fund, Dai Xianglong, said that he expects the single currency to survive the debt crisis.
This suggests that the euro may well retain some resilience even if sovereign debt concerns in the eurozone continue to rise.
- I-Net Bridge
