Cape Town - The rand was hovering around R12.36 to the dollar on Monday due to the US currency being on the back foot across the board owing to strong commodity prices, Bianca Botes of corporate treasury management at Peregrine Treasury Solutions said.
The British pound and euro were trading at R16.99 and R15.09 respectively.
"The rand remains in a tight range currently, with an eye on local politics and the SA Reserve Bank's Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meeting ahead," said Botes.
"We expect the rand to remain within the R12.20 – R12.50/$ range, although leaning more towards rand strength."
In her view, the current rand strength is mostly due to dollar weakness and strong commodity prices, as politics are currently only driving "immediate and short-term" fluctuations.
"As expected, President Jacob Zuma remains president of South Africa, and investors would be wise to be careful of fake news and speculation doing the rounds," she cautioned.
"Investors should also be aware that as today (Monday) is a US holiday, we expect liquidity to be thin and no deals can be settled today," she concluded.
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