Rand weakens versus dollar

Johannesburg - The rand gave back earlier gains against the dollar on Thursday, tracking a weaker euro after the European Central Bank unexpectedly reduced interest rates.

The rand tends to take its cue from the euro because of South Africa's strong trading links with the eurozone.

There was a dearth of market-moving domestic data on Thursday to provide the rand an alternative source of direction.

The local unit traded at R10.7150/$ by 16:50 GMT, down 0.25% from Wednesday's close. It was off Thursday's session high of 10.6015.

On the debt market, yields fell from the previous day, with the 2015 issue shedding 2.5 basis points to 6.54%.

The yield on the 2026 paper dropped 6 basis points to 7.965%.